


Dark Riddles

by 2sp00ky4me



Category: Original Work
Genre: Daddy Kink, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Polyandry, Serial Killer, Serial Killers, The daddy kink was a joke that went too far.
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-06
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-01-24 00:13:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 91,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21329023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/2sp00ky4me/pseuds/2sp00ky4me
Summary: Over the past year, a prolific serial killer known as The Midnight Killer has gone unchecked by an incompetent police force. As fate would have it, a couple of true crime YouTubers take up the case and manage to catch the attention of the man creating the mystery the pair are trying to solve.DO NOT COPY TO ANOTHER SITE.Не копируйте это на другой сайт.
Relationships: Jayden Mattis/Caleb Callahan, Jayden Mattis/William Hawking, Jayden Mattis/William Hawking/Caleb Callahan, William Hawking/Caleb Callahan
Comments: 6
Kudos: 5





	1. Prologue

Roberto Greene lived a quiet, uninteresting life. The only child of a banker and an accountant, both his childhood and adolescence would end up being nothing of note. He breezed through schooling with mediocre grades and, when it came time, did the same for college and graduate school as well. With time he found another, a woman just as unremarkable as himself, they soon wed and within a year announced that the two of them would soon bare a daughter. Though content, maybe even happy, there was to be little excitement in Roberto’s life. Day in and day out he slaved away in an office, a drone at the same accounting firm his mother had worked in, making just enough to provide his family a decent food and housing, a decent future for his daughter, and a decent retirement for both himself and his wife. With so much tragedy and suffering in the world, Roberto knew that he shouldn’t have taken what he had accomplished for granted - however, as the days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years, he couldn’t help but feel a growing emptiness inside of him. A longing for something more exciting, something that would bring meaning and true joy to his otherwise average existence. Unbeknownst to him, a chance encounter at an art expo would be the exact thing that would provide him with the excitement that he so craved.

Many people in that day and age enjoyed a hobby or two to cope with the mundaneness of modern living. For Roberto, this was art. Not painting or crafting, the man hadn’t a creative bone in his body, but he did very much enjoy his trips downtown where he took part in silent auctions. So out of place, he was at these events, a lone office drone in a bargain-big sweater surrounded by millionaires, celebrities, and executives all clad in the fanciest suits and furs. The lot of them ultimately paid him little attention, well other than the slight chuckle or abrupt cough when he dared to bid hundreds of pieces that would eventually go for millions by the end of the evening. Roberto, however, didn’t mind in the slightest, whatever embarrassment he felt was eclipsed by the excitement and satisfaction of being alongside the upper echelons of society. Sure the others thought him no better than an empty chair, and more than likely had petitioned in private to have him banned from these events, but he cared not. The sheer fantasy of being apart of their world, enjoying the things that they enjoyed and pretending to mingle in the conversations they conversed was enough to keep him coming to these events each and every weekend.

For months he had gotten used to this routine, never winning any bids, and essentially treated as no better than the collection of dust tucked away in the corner. This, however, would all change one fateful day when a newcomer came and sat at his side during preliminary bidding. The man was… striking, we wore the same custom-tailored suits and shows that the others did, but there was something about his eyes that was far sharper than all of the others. More than that though, unlike the others, the man had no qualms chatting and conversing with him. After a few months, their small talk and light chatter soon evolved into jokes and deep conversation critiquing their fellow peers. They might have come from two separate worlds, but they got along extremely well with one another. Or at least that was what Roberto had believed.

For years they had enjoyed each other’s company. The man, whom Roberto soon learned was an entrepreneur named Jayden Mattis, quickly climbed the ranks of social standing. In addition to being both charming and charismatic, Jayden happened to be an actual artist. Once maybe twice a year, he had a new piece that he put up for sale and each time he managed to secure bids totaling well over tens of thousands. Yet despite his newfound success and fame, Jayden always had his usual seat and always found time to enjoy Roberto’s company during these events.

Time would pass and with it came events that would put the entire city on edge. Throughout the city, seemingly random but surreal murders starting cropping up at the most unusual occasion. A lone woman found suffocated beneath a park bench, the corpse dressed in such a way that it looked as if she had cried herself to sleep and died from hypothermia. Next was the driver of a commuter train, eyes wide open and a frozen smile across his face as if death itself wouldn’t prevent him from making sure that his train ran on schedule. A man had been found starved and dehydrated sitting in front of the mayor’s one week positioned in such a way that he was still staring at his smartphone, while the following week a prominent lobbyist was found inside the lobby of a financial building apparently having died from suffocation after his throat had been stuffed with several wads of paper bills.

Every week another bizarre killing that monopolized the news cycles and both petrified and outraged the public. Week after week the police made press conference after press conference detailing their investigation, though it became obvious to even the dumbest of viewers that they weren’t making any headway. The killings were all far too random and erratic, one week it might have been a prominent stock-trader and the very next it was a homeless beggar, nothing linking them other than the corpse being set-up in a peculiar pose as a means of portraying a storyline of some sort. Though the extra patrols and security did manage to slow things down just a touch, turning abrasive, weekly murders into calculated and careful monthly ones, the police still had nothing to show other than an extremely lengthy and still-growing list of potential suspects.

Even for someone an ordinary as Roberto, the chain of murders meant substantial changes to his day-to-day living. Both he and his wife made sure to commute together mornings and evenings, and gave each other hourly status calls to both each other and the nursery to make sure that everyone was okay. The art auctions that he had enjoyed for years were now closed to the public completely and then canceled altogether when the rich and well-off found it far safer and more organized to simply hold invite-only events at their private residencies. Roberto, being as ordinary and uninteresting as he was, was never invited to any of these events of course. His weekends now being filled with family-friendly movies and events with the neighbors and their children that slowly but surely started to be a drain on his sanity.

Months would pass. It became clear that the police wouldn’t catch the enigmatic killer, and that he would never be able to return the public, ritzy auctions that he so very much enjoyed. He had resigned himself to just being a dull and uninteresting family man like his father and that would be that. Never in a million years did he believe that he would be invited to one of the exclusive, private auctions, and yet one such invitation would come to his doorstep one evening in the form of a neatly worded letter.

-

‘And now for today’s top story. Local authorities have officially announced the investigation of the murder of Roberto Greene, 46, and wife, Alison Greene, 42. The couple, reported missing last month, were found deceased inside of the basement of a storage facility early yesterday morning. Though authorities have yet to comment, various sources have revealed speculation that they are the latest victims of the infamous Midnight Killer. If confirmed, they will be the 43rd and 44th victims of the killer since their spree of crime began early last year. Expect further details as the story unfolds. For now, however, remembering the victims of this ongoing tragedy…’

The voice of the newscaster was interrupted by the sudden click of mute. Inside of well-furnished penthouse, a small group of individuals had gathered, all eyes watching a large flatscreen that had just been turned off. Surrounded by paintings and sculptures crafted by artists throughout the city, they each casually sipped glasses filled with wine and champagne as they used a moment of silence to process what they just watched.

“These gatherings were far more interesting when they actually reported on the crime scenes.” Came one of the females of the group, who promptly took another sip from her wine after letting out a sigh. “Now they just give us names and ages and runs that segment on the victims. It would do the victims far better justice to actually show the public what became of them, show us the art that came from their sacrifice.” She continued with a scoff.

“Careful, Alice. Words like that and you will have the SWAT teams breaking down your doors later.” Came another, male. Relaxing in an armchair off to the side as he sipped his own drink. Alice however just rolled her eyes. “I was already bought in for questioning, twice. They found nothing. And I will not allow their incompetence to silence me.”

“Because you are the killer.” Came another, jokingly.

“No. Because I can see past the morbidity and appreciate the aesthetic of what is being done here. A controversial, postmodern take on our society. Both the good and bad. Now, like the rest of you, I would love if they had chosen a more… harmless… means of creating their work, but I will not ignore the sheer genius behind all of this.”

“Genius that has now been indefinitely censored. What is the point of us gathering to discuss and debate over this work if the news cannot even properly report on it. I want to see a vision, not smiling pictures of the dead.”

“Wait… wait… wait… turn that back up, that guy. Roberto was it? Doesn’t he look familiar to the rest of you all?”

‘...Roberto Greene a local accountant of Philips and Filmbers was described by his neighbors as a loving hard-working father, and a local enthusiast of the fine arts and culture…” The newscaster continued right before they were muted again.

“Fuck! That’s the wallflower back when we were doing auctions… little mousey guy, was always followed you around Jayden.”

“You remember that nobody?” Another said, laughing. “Besides this isn’t the first time they got someone we knew of, at least last time it was someone important. Remember Philis? Died the way that she lived - a happy, no-good, artistic drunk. A shame she could not see her own death. It would have brought her to tears.”

“And we saw what became of her because that was back when they were actually showing the scenes. Now they just run these pointless victims’ segments.”

“Are you all really so helpless? You know there are other ways, give me the keyboard.”

The others continued ranting about the new inability to properly deliver news, a lone man was standing off in the corner drinking a beer. For the most part, he had been silent, simply watching the others discuss as he tried to get himself a nice buzz. It had been a terrible week for him, not only did the police take forever to discover his latest creation, the local news still refused to show the public his vision. Valuing the lives of the deceased more than the beautiful work that came from their sacrifice. It was so disappointing. Here were people who could easily enrich the lives of the millions living in their city, and yet they chose instead to run what was essentially a meaningless fluff piece.

“See, I’ve already found it. The police are so desperate that most of this stuff is now public record, you just need to know where to go.”

A couple of images started to slide across the television in powerpoint-fashion. As a whole it detailed a scene of a lone man kneeling in the center of the room, both hands clasped together in front of him as if he were praying. Surrounding him were several dollar-store quality paintings, all hung ajar of upside-down, however, the man himself wasn’t paying attention to him. Rather his full focus was on one grand painting hanging right before him, an original piece that had gone for millions at one of the auctions in times long past. Further, near the back of the room, his wife was seated, bound and gagged, in front of a table. One arm was resting in front of her, held out as if trying to reach her husband.

“I knew it. I KNEW it! It WAS that guy.” One the men exclaimed, the others, however, were looking at the photos a bit more carefully. “But wait… that would mean that…”

“It would mean that the killer would be one who attended the old auctions. Potentially one of us, most likely those who tried to befriend the nobody. Speaking of which… is that not your painting he’s looking at Geoff?”

“So is this the part of our gathering where we start pointing fingers? It is my painting and it was sold to Yoself.”

“...Yes, and it did not fit as nicely as I had thought in my bedchambers so I had it donated to charity. I know not what happened to it afterward but I supposed this makes me the killer now, hm? Besides, you said earlier that the wallflower had been following Jayden around like a lost puppy every week.”

“I felt bad for the man,” Jayden said, finally joining the conversation. “Joining us week after week only to be ignored by the lot of you. We love to talk about inclusion and diversity and yet rarely act on it. I tried to be different, still do actually.” He grinned, then continued jokingly. “But I suppose that my goodwill pins me as the killer now. Best call the police.”

The group would continue their discussion as they normally did, critiquing the crime scene and then speculating who it was actually committing the murders. Others took the opportunity to network or to walk around to inspect the various paintings and sculptures to find anything worth bidding on. Eventually, however, someone took control of the remote and then started to browse and search for something elsewhere.

“All this talking and speculation when we really ought to be consulting the experts. Not the police either.” One said, gathering quite a bit of suspicion and skepticism from the ground when they found that he was searching through livestreams of all things. “I told you I found something interesting today. Just watch, you’ll understand.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	2. Roberto and Alison Greene

**Caleb Callahan** could easily be said to have had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but then promptly spat it out when he came of age. Born to Clarence Callahan IV and Margot Beaumont in New York City approximately twenty-one years ago, Caleb had never wanted for anything. His father was from old money and had inherited a former arms company that was quickly made into a tech giant in more recent times. His mother, originally from France, was a fashion designer and former model, she also came from money.

Around the age of four, Caleb’s parents relocated across the country to Los Angeles simply because his mother didn’t care for the bitter cold out east. As his seventh birthday rolled around, arguments and disagreements became increasingly commonplace between his parents. Soon after, divorce proceedings followed and while Caleb remained in his father’s custody, his mother up and left to Miami with another man who she quickly married.

Over the following years, Caleb found himself with a mother on the other side of the country and a father who was often otherwise preoccupied and aloof. It wasn’t long before he gained a stepmother, though he made a point of avoiding her. Thankfully, he had little reason to interact with his stepfather. Despite the disconnect, Caleb found himself with little supervision and was rarely told no or denied anything. If he were anyone else he may have simply become a lazy and unmotivated trust fund baby. Caleb, during his teenage years, decided he wanted something different for himself.

**William Hawking**, by sharp contrast, was born with nothing and easily could have been said to have come from nothing. At the age of three, he was orphaned by a drunk driver who swerved into his parent’s car, killing the pair of them and nearly killing Will as well. Despite dying for three minutes, a doctor was able to get his heart beating once again and shortly after Will spent the next several years in a religious orphanage. Eventually, Will ended up in the foster care system and ended up with plenty of neglectful if not outright abusive families until he ran away at sixteen.

Even while homeless and doing odd jobs here and there, Will managed to graduate high school as well as building a decent following on YouTube in the world of horror and urban exploring. He soon had aspirations to go to college for film studies and that was where Caleb and Will met.

Unlike Will, Caleb had picked journalism as his major. Both had gotten into Cornell in their respective programs, but all through freshman year they butted heads in the shared classes they had. What changed things was one fateful project in which the pair had made a video together about an allegedly haunted amusement park where murders had occurred decades ago. Caleb had narrated the history of the murders, giving facts, but also providing his own interpretations of what had happened and even went as far as to form a solid opinion of who the murderer had been. Will, meanwhile, handled a good deal of the actual filming and editing but handled the ‘haunted’ angle by repeatedly debunking the theory while they explored the abandoned park. They had both split the research, though it was clear they had different interests in the location. Ultimately, the pair realized they worked well together and an unlikely friendship blossomed.

Over the first few years of college, Caleb built up his following on YouTube and a few other streaming sites and it wasn’t long before both Will and Caleb had a strong following though for different reasons and subject matter. Both had featured in each other’s videos from time to time, though around a year or so ago when the Midnight Killer murders started up, that changed. The pair had ended up devoting a lot of time collaborating on a series focused solely on the murders. Previously, Caleb had focused only on cold cases, but with the police getting desperate and information about the cases becoming public record, the temptation had been too strong to resist.

For the entirety of their junior year, they had covered the goings-on of the Midnight Killer while occasionally doing other videos as time permitted. Halfway through the first semester of their senior year, Roberto Greene and his wife were found dead. As usual, the police were hopeless, and as usual, Will and Caleb had a case to analyze and a question and answer session to follow.

“The timing _couldn’t_ have been worse,” Will murmured as he went around checking the camera and other equipment was good to go and ready to stream.

“Yeah, I was hoping he wouldn’t kill during midterms,” Caleb answered while settling in on the couch they usually occupied during these streams.

“...Wouldn’t it be better if he didn’t kill _at all_?” Will asked with a shake of his head as he turned the camera on and went through making sure their mics were working and the lighting was good. 

“Ideally murder wouldn’t happen ever, yeah,” Caleb agreed with a nod and a grin. “And let's be honest, both of us would rather be getting some sleep right now rather than doing the police department’s job for them.” 

“Okay, we’re good to go,” Will said, starting the stream as the pre-recorded title cards rolled. There were a good ten seconds of spooky music and the title card reading _‘The Midnight Killer Murders: Roberto and Alison Greene’_ displayed for anyone watching.

There was a transition from the title screen to a screen divided into three sections. Front and center were what was essentially a PowerPoint. To the upper right corner was the camera view of a blond with cornflower blue eyes and a perpetually smug expression on his face and beside him was a brunette with hazel-green eyes that had a more pensive expression. The brunette wore dark, ripped jeans and sneakers as well as a vintage band t-shirt and a black and red flannel tied around his hips. The blond, meanwhile, wore plain blue jeans, a set of dark boots suited for fall, and a dark peacoat and knitted arm warmers. The two of them sat on a dark brown couch with three seats and nothing else to discern where they were filming.

The blond, Caleb, was holding a manilla folder while the brunette, Will, held a clicker to change the displayed PowerPoint as they went. Below the camera feed of the pair was a window displaying the stream chat, mirroring the actual chatbox off to the side of the display. Already, regulars to their streams and others who followed their other social media accounts were posting in the chatbox. While Caleb monologued, Will normally monitored and responded to the chat.

“Hello and welcome back,” Caleb began, flashing a bright smile at the camera, Will gave a small wave as his full lips pulled into a more muted smile. “As you might have guessed, the Midnight Killer is at it again.” 

“You mean fucking up our midterm sleep schedules?” Will quipped, his smile widening just a little as he looked over to Caleb.

“That and, you know, killing people,” Caleb said with a shrug and a brilliant smile. “Anyway, let’s get into it because we’ve got a lot to cover,” he added while holding the manilla folder up.

Opening the case file up, Caleb began with a brief rundown of the victims and how they had been found. Will gave the clicker a click and the crime scene photo appeared in the PowerPoint screen to the left. They had blurred out anything that might get them axed due to the terms of service agreement, but it wasn’t hard to get the gist of it.

“Backtracking a bit,” Will cut in as Caleb finished discussing the crime scene and what he thought of it and what it might have meant. “One of our viewers in chat wants to know if the victims were kidnapped, drugged, or if there had been a struggle between them and the Midnight Killer.” 

“So for anyone who has seen our previous videos on all of this, all previous crime scenes had only _one_ victim,” Caleb said with a nod from Will. “This is our first two for one deal, but it’s kind of interesting and I’ll explain why in a moment,” he said, flipping to another page in his case file. “In all the previous cases, the constant has been the whole Banksy gimmick the Midnight Killer has going for him. The actual disappearances and murders were carried out in a variety of ways as far as the police or I can tell. **_But_**, with the Greenes it looks like two different methods were used to _subdue_ the couple.” 

Will gave a click and the PowerPoint display changed to give a basic idea of the difference. According to toxicology reports, Roberto had been drunk at the time of his death and interestingly had traces of a mild sedative in his system. Alison, meanwhile, had been drugged with something much heavier and had struggled based on light bruising indicating she had tried to fend off a stronger person before falling unconscious.

“I think the police have been asking the wrong question this entire time,” Caleb commented, “you know, the _‘did they have any enemies’_ and all that. I’m thinking, and this is just my take on what I’m seeing, is that Roberto knew and trusted the killer, enough that he went out and had a drink with the person who did this.” 

“A different viewer says ‘_what so a friend or something killed them_?’” Will commented, reading from his phone.

“I believe it was someone close to Roberto, but someone Alison may have not known.” For a moment, Caleb seemed to mull that over as the chat buzzed with activity. “What the police should be doing is looking into friends of Roberto’s, maybe co-workers, he had to have had a drinking buddy or something his wife didn’t know about.” 

“Another viewer says ‘_do you think Roberto was having an affair, maybe the mistress killed them both_?’” Will frowned as he read it. “I can answer this one. Since this is a serial killer and this fits the profile of the Midnight Killer I think it’s reasonable to say that this isn’t a crime of passion unless Roberto’s mistress moonlights as the Midnight Killer.” 

“It’s possible that Roberto was unlucky enough to personally know the Midnight Killer well enough to let his guard down around them,” Caleb said after a moment.

“There are still some people in the comments theorizing the Midnight Killer is the work of a group, a cult, or the Illuminati,” reading from the comments, Will shook his head. “Do we even know if this is just one person?” 

“Honestly we can’t say without a doubt that it is one person,” Caleb murmured, loud enough that his mic caught it, but he seemed to be considering something. “But I believe based on all the previous cases we’ve covered that this is being carried out by a single individual.” 

“Someone asked if this has any connection to the deep web,” a look of distaste crosses Will’s face as he looks up from the phone. “Like a snuff film producer or a red room,” he added.

“...Wouldn’t that be fucked up if all the murders were filmed and being circulated on the deep web,” an uncomfortable laugh passing Caleb's lips as he spoke. “I don’t know, I feel like the killer thinks of themselves as an artist,” he said with a frown, “snuff films might...I don’t know, _cheapen_ the whole thing.” 

“Do _you_ think the killer is an artist?” Will asks, seeming to consider something while his attention settles on Caleb.

Caleb, meanwhile, looks caught off guard. He supposed that depended on what one considered ‘art’ and he had to contemplate the question itself. As far as he knew the killer thought of the murders and crime scenes left behind as art. Though that did make him wonder if the art angle was something to consider. Perhaps the murderer was an artist or at least familiar with the local art scene. It was something to consider.

“Of course not,” Caleb said with a handwave, “I think the killer is sick and should be locked up, but I’m wondering now if they might have connections to the local art scene,” he continued.

“That almost sounds like a given,” Will commented, “I’m pretty sure the police combed through a bunch of artist circles already and one of the earlier victims was an artist herself if I’m remembering correctly. Like Roberto, she might have known the killer too.” 

“Yeah, which makes me think the police are missing someone,” for a moment, Caleb let that hang in the air before going on, “**_or_** they had the killer and botched the investigation already, which wouldn't surprise me with how they've handled this case so far.” 

“Anyway, we should get back to the analysis you had planned,” Will started typing on his phone, indicating to the chat that they wanted to hold on questions.

For the next hour, Caleb started from the start of his timeline up until the police discovered the bodies. He left no details out, only pausing when Will prompted him to elaborate on something. Eventually, the pair were ready to end stream as they’d covered as much as they could.

"I'd like to remind everyone that the analysis of the previous cases,” Caleb started as a cool down for the stream. “As well as all our follow up Q and A videos on them, can be found archived over on our YouTube channel, ‘Crime Busters Inc.’” 

“Also, don’t forget we’re having a Q and A session, same time tomorrow,” Will continued for them, “to answer any remaining questions you all might have.” 

“See you guys tomorrow,” the pair said in excited unison waving as the stream ended, leaving the black _‘user is offline’_ screen behind.

* * *

Despite the preliminary skepticism that filled the room after the announcement that they would be watching a couple of seemingly amateur live-streamers, the majority of the group found themselves glued to the screen once more as the pair went into an in-depth discussion of the latest crime. Some still scoffed and turned their attentions back to their drink and the surrounding artwork, they being more interested in the artistry surrounding the crime scene rather than the details surrounding the murders. The others however all looked very much intrigued, some even a bit concerned.  
  
“Now I know we’ve been joking on and on again about the killer being in one of our circles. But what if, and humor me on this, there is actually some truth here. The killer really has been among us the entire time.” One of the attendees stated, swirling his flute glass slowly as carefully watched the duo go through their analysis of the crime scene. The others as a whole, however, didn’t look the slightest bit amused by the suggestion. “This is going to be another Philis situation, isn’t it?” Came another. “The police start hounding us, ruining our schedules, turning us all suspicious against one another. But do you remember what came out of that situation? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The killer is still at large, and I continue to enjoy a good scotch among the crème de la crème of high society.” The others immediately nodded and started to comment in agreement as well. “We who are already top of our class do not need to pull off stunts like this for attention. The very notion of what you are suggesting, David, is absurd.”  
  
“Perhaps, but-”  
  
“There is no BUT, David! If you, or anyone else, feels so bold then you may leave and go speak with the police yourself. Pour more gasoline onto this dumpster fire. The lot of us would very much enjoy being labeled as flight risks and treated as criminals. Again!”  
  
A lengthy silence fell throughout the room afterward, cut only by the drone of the duo commentators still doing their analysis on the murder of the Greene’s. They were all trapped in a way, even if one of them knew another to be the killer going to the police meant career and social suicide. It was far, far easier to stay the course and pretend as if everything and everyone was okay. Joking and laughing, even though one of their own could be plotting their demise.  
  
“Now with that said, I’ve had enough of this nonsense.” The man then said, grabbing the remote and turning off the stream before it had even finished. “Let us start the bidding, shall we? I would enjoy my free time while I still have it before one of you politely recommends for the police to come knocking at my estate.”  
  
-  
  
It wouldn’t be until the late hours of night that Jayden found himself back inside of his studio apartment, huddled away in the darkness with only the dull glow of his laptop illuminating his face. His room was quite large for a studio, decorated and furnished nicely with the finest of furniture and sculptures. Many of the paintings that lined the walls were his own, older works or piece that he just didn’t have the heart to sell, but there were also some pieces that he had acquired through trade with his fellow artists.  
  
Nice as it was in the daylight, at night (especially given that Jayden was sitting there in the darkness) the room had an odd eeriness about it. The statues and sculptures all turned into strange, almost chilling silhouettes in the shadows, the paintings all turned dull and lifeless without illumination to bring out their brighter, warmer palettes.  
  
Nearest the window, right next to the balcony was a medium-sized easel that depicted a finished scene reminiscent of Roberto’s murder. At the very center, the man looked directly back at the viewer, a deep sadness and despair in his gaze but with a smile that that reflected both hope and peace. The man looked almost torn, unable to deal with the conflicting emotions of being dead but also having become the very thing that he idolized. Under normal circumstances, Jayden would have been working dutifully on any finishing touches in order to get the painting shipped on time. He had already found a prospective buyer on the deep web, all that was needed was to coordinate an exchange that protected both of their identities. That evening, however, Jayden wasn’t doing what was normal for him, rather he was sitting there in the darkness, both eyes wide and utterly fixated as he watched looped playbacks of the two live-streamers discussing his most recent work.

-  
  
To understand how [Jayden Mattis](https://66.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lui6x73gr11r29u6qo1_640.jpg) became the Midnight Killer, a title so lame and utterly devoid of creativity that he couldn’t help but wince whenever it was uttered, one need only look at his childhood. Born the only child of a free-spirited mother and father, both novelists, he was encouraged at an early age to express himself, whenever and however he pleased. Considering their choice of profession, both parents were very much active in Jayden’s life - constantly showering him with encouragement and providing him with all the tools that he needed to embrace his true, creative self.  
  
The family quickly found that he had an eye for colors and creating with these colors. Day in and day out he worked on filling his room with completed coloring books. By the age of ten, he had upgraded to blank art books that he happily filled with all sorts of vivid scenery and landscapes that rivaled budding artists far older than himself, and by his teenage years, he had moved onto easels and trying his hand at easels and paintings. His life was filled with color, the imaginary worlds and people that he created and the praise and reactions from his parents and their friends that he so eagerly craved.  
  
The house of warmth, laughter and love would not last however. A fated outing to a local art museum would eventually result in a massive car crash that look the life of Jayden’s father. First respondents to the scene would find the sole survivor not devastated or even phased, but rather enamored. The teen was just sitting there, trapped inside the wreckage of his car, absolutely fixated on the blood that coated both himself and his deceased father. It looked so vibrant, so alive compared to all of the other mediums he had worked with beforehand and he couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming joy at its discovery. Not only that but the reactions as well, the emotions that erupted from the onlooker sand spectators that watched the scene were so extreme, so… raw. It was far greater and overwhelming than anything he had even dreamed of accomplishing through his meager drawings and sketches.  
  
For his mother, however, this was the beginning of far darker times. The loss of her lifetime partner was devastating on its own, but now the bundle of joy that had once been her son was now captivated by anything and everything grossly morbid and macabre. Initially she thought it to be a phase, a means of him to process the death of his father, however the moment she caught him draining the blood of captured alley-cats to complete his latest ‘work’ she immediately had him recommended to a psychiatrist.  
  
Despite his newly acquired tastes, Jayden seemed perfectly normal. Which worked perfectly for his mother as she wanted the world to see him as an artist, not as a psycho. Rather than revealing anything about the cats or the gruesome imagery that he now studied, she simply made a case that he was depressed and created such a scene over it that the doctors had no choice but to prescribe antidepressants.  
  
Ever to please, Jayden dutifully took the pills as his mother ordered and slowly but surely mellowed out. Rather than having a son brimming with hope and warmth, or a son that was dark and morbid, she now had a child completely devoid of emotion or energy. It showed in his work as well, his art becoming far more abstract and devoid of any color or life. It broke her heart seeing him this way, but she convinced herself that it was for the best. That maybe, just maybe, the drugs would correct whatever was wrong in his head and someday revert him back to the happy, warm child that he once was.  
  
Years would pass, and when he was finally of age Jayden’s abstract work had been enough to get him accepted into a prestigious art university. It also signaled the moment where he would finally be taken off of his medication, his mother feeling far too guilty at that point to allow him to continue on the rest of his years in such a stupor. He would go on to make waves at university, his art enchanting but his grades lacking, and ultimately would find himself expelled after the faculty could no longer ignore his gross negligence of academia no matter how hard they tried. It was not a sad parting however. Before leaving, the dean herself would put in a couple of recommendations for him, contacts who would potentially take an interest in his work.  
  
His rise to fame however was not so simple. A wealthy patron didn’t suddenly enter into his life and promise him millions. In fact, most of the contacts and recommendations didn’t even give him the time of day, not one opportunity to see what he was capable of. Many a month were spent working day jobs paying for a ratty old apartment in the city slums, weekends spent buckling down in the city park offering to draw caricatures for couples of tourists looking for something fun to do. None of them ever saw his work for what it truly, never gave him a reaction that truly caved. It was so demeaning so… disappointing.  
  
It was only by sheer chance that he learned of the art auctions downtown. An elderly couple mentioning it offhand among their list of things to do one weekend while they patiently waited for their caricature to be completed. It wasn’t difficult to track down down the location, it was open to the public after all, however getting one’s work into auction however was another thing entirely. For months he had saved, first to get himself a worthy suit, and then to schedule thirty minutes of time with one of the top stylists in the city. He poured himself into one expansive painting of the city skyline. The colors of a rich collection of oranges and yellows that he had secured from the local art store, and reds that he happily secured from the captured rats of his apartment. It was mundane but he found that people loved the mundane. People in those days didn’t want to think, they just wanted to feel happy and nostalgic, and this was something he knew he could deliver on. They also wanted wanted something posh and extravagant, hence the need for the suit and styling. When it came time, he would march in there acting like all of the others in the crowd, arrogant, suave, and extremely, ridiculously wealthy.  
  
That was the sole turning point in his luck. Despite having never seen him before, the others happily conversed and chatted with him as if he were one of them. Claiming to be a famous painter from the countryside he managed to secure their recommendations to sell his work. And once it was finally on display, as bids turned from a few hundreds to a couple of thousands, eventually settling on just above a hundred-thousand, he knew that his years of struggle would finally be over…  
  
...except they weren’t. The company he kept was no better than the people who he drew caricatures of on the streets. Happy and appreciative of his work on surface level alone, seeing it only as a piece to be put on display for their newest townhouse or summer villa and never quite getting the meaning behind it. Their reactions were so fake, so superficial, they didn’t care about art they only cared about showing off how much money they could spend on it. Hell, he found the meek little office worker who couldn’t even bid on anything far more entertaining and enriching than all of the rich blowhards combined. It was still so demeaning and so very, very disappointing. But this time it got him money, clout as well, and with those two combined he realized that he could accomplish far, far greater works.  
  
The decision for a live spectacle came to him in a dream, though for others it would best be considered a nightmare. He was taken back to that wonderful time of his teenage years, back to the car crash where he was surrounded by blood and ruin and the raw, unfiltered emotions of the spectators and first respondents. He realized not long after waking that he was fully capable of creating such scenes himself now. Why continue to experiment on small animals for just the perfect shade of red when he could upgrade to his fellow humans? Surely the human body would offer more variants of color, not to mention the different ways he could force out of them the raw emotion he so desperately hungered for. These works would, in turn, also drive a reaction out of the public as well. A gift that would keep on giving, an evolution of art itself.  
  
-  
  
Jayden never thought he would get away with any of these killings, never expected to. After the fifth or six he had expected the police to be competent enough to track him down, the unknown artist would finally be unmasked to millions of adoring fans watching the news. However his fifth turned into his tenth, which turned into his twenties, and according to the news he was now at his forty-forth. His latest work was him throwing them a bone, surely they could track down something so obvious. He was one of Roberto’s closest friends during the auctions, the crime scene itself was a love-letter to the time the two of them spent together discussing art they could not have. It would have been perfect had the wife not shown up when she did. So suspicious of things, she had tailed the man straight into the storage facility. She was a last minute addition that he honestly felt detracted from the composition as a whole, and now their poor child was left an orphan. Had she had brought the girl as well he could have at least salvaged things and turned it into a reflection of how broken the modern family was. Such a lost opportunity.  
  
Dwelling on his mistakes however was the furthest thing from his mind at that moment. The sun had already started to rise as he, yet again, replayed the live-stream right from the beginning. The duo had combed through the crime-scene in extensive detail from mere photos, correctly guessed the circumstances that led to Roberto’s end, and even touched upon the little mistake he had with the wife. Had the two of them been in charge of things he might have gotten his grand finale eons ago, alas they were merely YouTube stars using these circumstances to further their own popularity.  
  
“See you guys tomorrow” The duo said collectively, for what was probably the fiftieth time at that point. They were close, so very close, but not quite there. How could they have gone so in-depth into his work and not consider him an artist? Disappointing. But unlike the rich blowhards maybe they could be salvaged. There was such great care and detail put into their work, perhaps all that was needed here was something that was truly grand. Something so inspirational, so uplifting that they would have no choice but to look past the crime and see it for its beauty.  
  
Instinctively he had already started moving the mouse back to replay, but quickly stopped himself with his other hand. There was little left for him to study, and while it was tempting to go back and review their older analysis’ he needed to wash and get his painting finished and ready to be shipped. Before leaving however, he moved to the little donation button off in the corner and wired the two of them ten-thousand in bitcoin from an anonymous donor. His connection was secured via VPN and with his finances being handled via cryptocurrency there would be no way for the two of them, nor the police, to trace the donation back to him. Alongside the donation he offered a seemingly innocent comment and question:  
  
‘Big fan of your work you two! Tell me, what inspires to continue your sleuthing? Looking forward to the Q&A session later’

* * *

“We haven’t had dinner yet,” while stretching, Caleb considered their options. “Did you want to go out?”  
  
“I guess, if you want,” Will had gotten up and began turning everything off for the night, not too concerned about eating. “There are a few places open this late, but do you really want to go out at night while a deranged psychopath is running around?”  
  
Caleb gave a shrug as a lazy smile graced his face. He found it unlikely that there was more than one culprit behind the killings and the idea that this lone killer could jump out of the bushes and take on two fully conscious and cognizant adults struck him as funny. Still, even if he found it unlikely and outright humorous, not everyone did. The school had issued warnings about students wandering around campus at night, the importance of the buddy system had been emphasized, and even the student body was worried, not just the administrators. Much to Will’s chagrin, the parties had been subpar for the last year, though admittedly he’d personally cut back on drinking at all out of paranoia.  
  
“I’ll keep you safe,” Caleb said while Will rolled his eyes.  
  
“I’ve met kittens more intimidating than you,” the deadpan response as Will considered his own personal history with criminals, stalkers, and other unsavory types. “I’ve still got my taser and everything,” he said to reassure himself. “Oh, and the baseball bat by the door, I think I can handle myself.”  
  
“We can order in,” relenting, Caleb got up from the couch and followed after Will as the pair left the basement studio they had set up around a year ago.  
  
A little over a year ago, before the Midnight Killer had killed their first victim, Will had to contend with a different sort of criminal. A hospital visit, some stitches, a refusal to name a perpetrator or press charges, and a haircut later, he did what he could to cope. Occasionally, Will would still see his assailant in the news and had stopped following the world of politics altogether. Upon hearing what had happened, Caleb had started to stay over at Will’s house more often.  
  
Will’s house was a quaint little one-bedroom in a reasonably safe neighborhood in the more historical side of town. He had gotten the house relatively cheap since the previous owner had been eager to leave to Florida a few years ago and didn’t want to cling to a cozy old house towards the end of her life. Caleb, meanwhile, had been living in an upscale apartment his father had paid for while his mother funneled money towards his schooling. Around the time Caleb elected to move in with Will he had subleased his old apartment to another tenant, though it was still formally listed Caleb on the lease.  
  
Originally, Caleb had set up a temporary bedroom in the basement, but within a month Will insisted he could rearrange his bedroom and they could fit another bed in there. With the two of them sharing a room, the basement space had been converted into a studio for their various YouTube projects. Of course, this was around the time the Midnight Killer was starting to make a name for himself as the most prolific serial killer the city had ever seen.  
  
Midway through the Midnight Killer’s reign of terror, Will had been battling another relentless nightmare. He had met another student by the name of Norman Smith at a party on campus, they’d hit it off at first, and soon after red flags started going up. Within a month Will was dealing with constant harassment and stalking online and in real life, though Caleb’s presence helped to some degree. When it all came to a head one evening, Caleb had been in Miami visiting his mother. By the end of it, Norman was taken to jail with a broken nose courtesy of one of Will’s friends and Will was left with another layer of paranoia.  
  
“Ordering in sounds great,” Will replied as the two of them wandered into the living room. “Did you want anything in particular?” He asked, already searching for a take out place on his phone to order from.  
  
While staring at his phone screen, Will got a notification, followed by another. He frowned for a moment, squinting at his phone as he tried to understand what he was seeing. Opening his mouth, he looked ready to say something, then closed it, still frowning deeply in confusion. Finally, not believing his eyes, he held his phone up for Caleb to see.  
  
“Am I seeing that number right?” He asked, not sure what to think of suddenly finding their shared account up by ten thousand bitcoin.  
  
Caleb’s eyebrows shot up in surprise at the sight of the number. There weren’t many people who could frivolously throw that kind of money around for the fun of it. Sure, people did exist with that kind of money, but to see it tossed their way because of their crime-solving livestreams was insane to him.  
  
“There’s a message, in your notifications,” Caleb said quietly, eyes flitting between the number and another notification.

_‘Big fan of your work you two! Tell me, what inspires you to continue your sleuthing? Looking forward to the Q&A session later’_

  
Turning his phone back to himself, Will mouthed the words. The two of them were thinking it over and while this person referred to themselves as a fan, this was the first they’d seen of someone _this_ interested. Interest was the first assumption either of them had, otherwise why send so much. Will couldn’t help the paranoia shiver than ran down his spine, only able to think of the people who had hurt him in the past.  
  
“Well, I guess we’re going to have to answer their question tomorrow,” Caleb said after a moment. For his part, Will simply nodded.

~~~

The following evening came around much faster than either Caleb or Will would have liked. They’d considered the question their mysterious donor had posed over the course of the day. Both of them had finished their midterm exams and with that behind them, they had little to do other than prepare for their Q and A session.  
  
They didn’t say much while Will set up and Caleb fidgeted with his case notes. Both of them were lost in thought and to an extent distracted. They both wanted to know who the donor had been, though more pressingly, they wanted to understand why. The unspoken agreement Will and Caleb had was that they’d just have to answer the question and see where this all lead.  
  
“Hello and welcome back,” Caleb started, his usual beaming smile back in place as the intro card finished rolling. “Tonight we are having our Q and A session covering our analysis of the Midnight Killer’s most recent victims, Roberto and Alison Greene,” he finished.  
  
“We got an interesting question last night after our stream ended,” Will chipped in, waving his phone before reading the aforementioned question out loud for the viewers who had peaked in number as the stream started. “They had asked, ‘_what inspires to continue your sleuthing?’”_  
  
“I think you can go first,” Caleb piped up, his attention on Will.  
  
“Fine, whatever,” Will shrugged. “So everyone who’s been following me before all this madness started knows that I got into YouTube doing urbex videos and then I got into paranormal stuff after.” Sighing, Will looked as if he’d rather be talking about a dead couple than his own history. “Anyway, I’m a film student, as most of you know, and Caleb and I have worked on a few things together in the past and when this came up I was on board with helping research and technical support.”  
  
Caleb glanced over at Will, knowing he didn’t really answer the question satisfactorily. In the past, Caleb had gotten more out of Will regarding his motivations for helping with the Midnight Killer case. He’d also gotten more out of Will about why he wanted to go into film in the first place and the answer had been a little more compelling in private.  
  
“So it’s not because you’re a horror junkie who creeps around decaying buildings and tells people ghosts aren’t real?” Caleb said, grin widening.  
  
“There’s...a long-ass explanation to everything you just said,” Will commented, deflecting a bit. “I’m sure you’ll have a better answer.”  
  
“Well then,” Caleb seemed to get the hint that the question from the donor had left Will uncertain. “All of our regulars by now know I’m a journalism student and I’m _hoping_ to go into investigative reporting. You know, the whole ‘exposing the truth’ thing and yanking the lid off of Pandora’s Box. I’ve been doing cold cases for my channel before the Midnight Killer and with the police half-assing it, I thought ‘what the Hell’ and decided to work the case with Will, who happens to be amazing at digging things up. So what’s inspiring me is to one-up the police, plus it’s certainly a bonus that I think the killer is some art snob. Who wouldn’t want to watch some rich or pretentious asshole get dragged to the modern guillotine?”  
  
“What if the killer is your dad?” Will quipped, shaking his head, knowing full well once upon a time Caleb could have been counted among the ‘rich assholes’ he seemed to hold in contempt.  
  
“Impossible, he’s in Malibu with his third wife living it up,” handwaving, Caleb seemed unconcerned. “Ooooh, are you implying I have daddy issues?” He continued just before he started to laugh. “Who knows, I might for all we know.”  
  
“Whatever you do, don’t call the Midnight Killer ‘daddy,’” Will joined in, glad they’d moved into lighter territory.  
  
“Just to fuck with you, I’ll do just that,” Caleb turned more towards the camera, a look of determination on his face. “So, enough about us, does anyone have any questions about ‘daddy’ or the Greenes?”  
  
“Oh my God,” Will sighed, looking at his phone as questions flooded the chat. “And I thought ‘the Midnight Killer’ was a _barely_ okay name.”

* * *

A busy day with barely any rest. There was so much to catch up on after getting barely two hours of proper rest.  
  
There were the finishing touches that needed to be made to his latest work which in itself took up the majority of the afternoon. Much as he would have loved to rush things he could never allow himself to, the buyer might not have been able to notice the subtle errors but he most definitely could and it irked him greatly. Then there were the arrangements that needed to be made: a courier needed to be scheduled to pick up the work from the lobby, where they would then deliver it to an anonymous P.O box where it would ultimately be picked up by his buyer. All this while dealing with constant text messages and calls from his associates: Would he be making brunch tomorrow? Was he still set to deliver the opening greeting for so-and-so at such-and-such? How goes the planning committee for the expo next month? Would he like to enjoy some cocktails later and return to a mutual friend’s condo to ‘see what happens’?  
  
By the time everything was said and done, Jayden was absolutely exhausted and found himself sitting slumped yet again in front of his laptop. Had he not already had plans he would have been getting ready for the cocktail outing and whatever depravity came afterward, however, that unfortunately he had to decline. The lights were all once again off, and he despite his exhausted state he stared with great interest at the channel’s placeholder image. Fitted in a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a sleeveless shirt, he brought a bottle of beer to hip lips as he waited ever so patiently for the two to come back online.  
  
He was on his third bottle by the time the screen lit up again and a pair of familiar voices shot through the speakers. To his surprise, the pair opened up the segment with the question he had sent over early that morning. After such a sizable donation it should have been expected, however, Jayden wanted to believe it was something more than that - that the pair had valued him far more than the other so-called fans. He listened in with great interest for both of their answers, but also remained acutely aware of any donation messages that popped up. They popped up often but they were only a few dollars, twenty at most, virtually nothing compared to what he had offered them earlier. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that. Anger? Disgust? So-called regulars that were only capable of offering the change in their pockets, not truly appreciating what it was they were watching. It reminded him of his days in the park, drawing caricature after caricature for nameless faces who all undervalued his exceptional work.  
  
Doing his best to ignore the donors, Jayden tried to keep his focus on the answers that he received. He learned that the two of them were students, though he wondered at which college and how close that happened to be. It also seemed that the duo had been working together for some time.“I’m not a snob...” He whispered to himself, during Caleb’s answer, his brow furrowing just a bit. That one stung a bit. His associates, all of them, they were the snobs. He, however, was an artist on a sacred mission to inspire the masses.  
  
The two of them would continue, joking with each other, culminating into a moment where the blond had looked directly at the screen and pretty much directly called him daddy. The sting of his previous comment was all but forgotten at that point, replaced instead by a sharp shiver that went right down his spine. Staring dumbfounded at the screen, Jayden but opened and then closed his mouth, not sure what to say… though, considering he was alone at the moment, nothing needed to be said at all.  
  
The question segment continued, and Jayden just shook his head and finished off the rest of his beer in one go to try and collect himself. He created an account, Virtuoso777, to throw out his own questions as well - each tied to its own donation to ensure that they would be seen. Though for some others he logged off and made himself anonymous.  
  
The questions as a whole mostly started off benign, and though he loathed it he kept his donations small to try and better blend in with the others:

  * $5 - What are your current expectations on how the police will handle this latest case?
  * $10 - Why do you think the killer is so desperately trying to turn these murders in so-called ‘art’ ?
  * (anonymous) $1 - OMG! I think I saw you in the halls the other day! What college did the two of you say you go to again?
  * (anonymous) $1 - Opps… also can I ask for an autograph if we run into each other???
  * $3 - Why do you think the police have been so incompetent in trying to catching them?
  * $7 - Is this really art? Some people are saying it is, and others are saying it isn’t.
  * $1 - Also. If no one died, would the Pro-Art group still think it art?

Later on into the evening however, he made himself fully anonymous and the questions got even vaguer.

  * $50 - Did any of the victims suffer?
  * $150 - How do you think the victims feel about being made the subjects of the so-called art?
  * $75 - How do you think the victims feel about being made the subjects of your livestream?
  * $75 - Isn’t this the same thing?
  * $300 - What is art?
  * $500 - What makes an artist?
  * $1,250 - Are beauty or morbidity really different from one another?
  * $5000 - How do you think this all will end?
  * $10000 - One day, I will like an autograph as well : )

* * *

Despite the other donations being much smaller than what they had received the previous night anonymously, both Will and Caleb seemed content with each donation. Will mostly because there was a time when a few dollars here or there had made all the difference in his life. Caleb because he had grown to understand that all some people had was change in their pockets. Either way, neither of them were complaining and seemed more intent on the questions and comments filtering in through the chat.

_$5 - What are your current expectations on how the police will handle this latest case?_

“Okay, here’s a question about the police from Virtuoso777,” Will started to read it off, word for word. “I personally think the police have fucked it up so badly that nothing short of walking in on the killer while they’re killing someone else is going to do anything. ...I feel like the Greene case normally should have been a turning point since it breaks pattern?”  
  
“I’d say I agree,” Caleb replied with a nod. “Obviously they haven’t made any headway, otherwise they wouldn’t have made so much of the case public. I did try to forward copies of my case files to them, I even showed up at the police station with them, but they heard ‘YouTube’ and didn’t want to hear more. Their loss I guess.”

_$10 - Why do you think the killer is so desperately trying to turn these murders in so-called ‘art’ ?_

“Another question, from Virtuoso again,” once more, Will read the question aloud for Caleb.  
  
“A cry for attention...maybe...?” Caleb offered, “I wouldn’t call this a cry for _help_ though, or even attention to the killer, I did mention before I’m getting Banksy vibes from the way the bodies are posed and found by the police. I do feel like the killer is going for social commentary and has a very gruesome way of doing it.”  
  
“You don’t need to kill people for social commentary,” shaking his head, Will looked dismayed. “Just bitch and moan on Twitter like the rest of us.”  
  
“But this person thinks of themselves as an artist **_and_** clearly there’s something wrong with them,” Caleb quickly added. “...Though I think there’s something wrong with most Twitter users too.”

_(anonymous) $1 - OMG! I think I saw you in the halls the other day! What college did the two of you say you go to again?_

“Oh a school question,” Will said then read the question out. “We both go to Cornell, our graduation is this upcoming Spring actually.”  
  
“Speaking of upcoming things,” Caleb had a conspiratory grin on his face. “Will’s twenty-first birthday is this Halloween, he can finally lose his fake ID.”  
  
“You’re about two months older than me,” Will responded, knowing full well they’d both been using fake IDs for anything alcohol-related up until now.

_(anonymous) $1 - Opps… also can I ask for an autograph if we run into each other???_

“_‘Can I ask for an autograph if we run into each other,’_” Will repeated the question, a small smile on his face. “You’re going to have to chase us down for that,” he added, somewhat joking.  
  
“But first you’re going to have to find us,” Caleb continued, not at all opposed to signing things for a fan.

_$3 - Why do you think the police have been so incompetent in trying to catching them?_

“Huh,” Will paused for a moment, before reading the question for Caleb. “Didn’t we address this in an earlier video?” He asked, trying to think of the case, thinking it was back around the twentieth or so victim.  
  
“We did, but we can repeat the answer,” thinking for a moment, Caleb wondered if the answer had changed since then. “The knee-jerk response is that the police are being paid off to look the other way, but I find that doubtful.”  
  
“Like, how much would you have to pay off an entire police department?” Will said, smiling in a way that indicated he found the idea funny. “Or better yet, keep paying them off when they’ve become a laughing stock?”  
  
“I’m surprised the FBI hasn’t muscled their way into this,” with a pensive look, Caleb seemed to consider something. “I think it might be a jurisdiction thing until this becomes a national incident it’s up to the local police to figure it out.”  
  
“Anyway, our answer in a previous stream was that the reason the police haven’t pieced it all together is that they don’t have much tangible, concrete evidence to go on.” Pausing, Will considered the situation and decided to elaborate. “The MO is obviously the same with the victims being posed in a very specific way, but there’s no DNA, no fingerprints, no murder weapon, and even the methods used to kill or subdue the victims vary from case to case.”  
  
“Which is part of the reason some people thought it might be a group effort,” Caleb added. “There’s no eyewitnesses or audio-video evidence to go off of, so really all the police can do is speculate.” A pause as Caleb considered it. “I just think they’re approaching it all wrong in their speculation.”

_$7 - Is this really art? Some people are saying it is, and others are saying it isn’t._

_“‘Is this really art...’”_ frowning, Will repeated the question in its entirety for his co-host’s benefit. “From a film standpoint, I’d say whether something is art is an individualistic conclusion, so I can see why there’s a divide.”  
  
“‘One man’s garbage is another man’s treasure?’” Caleb offered, smiling brightly at the camera.  
  
“Do _you_ think it’s art?” Will asked, side-eyeing Caleb just a bit.  
  
“I think it’s _interesting,” _shrugging Caleb’s smile didn’t falter as he looked to Will. “It’s certainly more compelling than John Wayne Gacy stuffing his crawlspace full of his decomposing victims.”  
  
“I’d say that the Midnight Killer _thinks_ their work is art,” Will said after a moment and Caleb nodded his agreement. “I’m more cinematic oriented, personally,” he said with an air of finality.

_$1 - Also. If no one died, would the Pro-Art group still think it art?_

“Hmm,” Once again, Will read the question, and didn’t seem to have a fast answer for this one.  
  
“Well, we’re not a pro-art group,” Caleb shrugged, “so I don’t know, the artsy-fartsy crowd was always too pretentious for me.”  
  
“I think it’d be easier to call it art if people weren’t being murdered for it,” Will concluded. “But, if the goal is an emotional or visceral reaction the killer is certainly getting that out of people.”  
  
“Remember when you had me watch Hostel before I went on Christmas break in France with my mother?” Caleb asked Will suddenly. “What if there’s like...a group of stuck up rich people getting off to the crime scenes?”  
  
“...Jesus Christ,” shaking his head, Will then gave an uncomfortable sort of laugh. “Just buy a Rembrandt and get your jollies that way.”  
  
With the end of Virtuoso777’s questions, Will and Caleb proceeded to answer the other questions coming their way. Most of them were about school, plans for Will’s birthday, and occasionally another question about past cases. Occasionally a question about their other channels and even other killers came up. Eventually, a number of anonymous comments appeared, accompanied by increasingly and alarmingly high donation amounts. Will’s eyebrows shot up as he read the questions and the chat buzzed to life at the obscene numbers that went with each question. On camera, Will was simply staring at his phone in shock while Caleb looked confused and eventually leaned over to see what had stunned Will into silence.  
  
“What the fuck,” Will finally murmured as he looked up and over to Caleb.  
  
“Ah, this wouldn’t happen to be from our anonymous donor the other night?” Caleb inquired, maintaining his composure a little better.

_$50 - Did any of the victims suffer?_

“I’m pretty sure being murdered involves suffering,” the answer came through gritted teeth as Will continued to stare at his phone. “Even if the victims didn’t suffer their loved ones certainly will. Did you know the Greenes had a daughter? She’s orphaned now because some sick fuck wanted to play artist with people’s lives.”

_$150 - How do you think the victims feel about being made the subjects of the so-called art?_

“I’ll take this next question,” Caleb said, grabbing Will’s hand and tilting the phone towards himself. “I don’t think they’d be thrilled, at least I think _most _of them would be pretty angry about it, but I’m not a mind reader and I can’t talk to the dead.”

_$75 - How do you think the victims feel about being made the subjects of your livestream?_

“We sure as Hell didn’t pick them for this,” murmuring, Caleb shook his head and shrugged. “The intent was for the Midnight Killer to be the subject, the victims are more of a side effect of that.”

_$75 - Isn’t this the same thing?_

“I’m a journalist, not an artist,” the answer came simply and nonchalantly and Caleb once again flashed a smile for the camera. “I’m trying to figure out what the police can’t and maybe if they wanted to hear me out there’d be justice for the victims.”  
  
“We also didn’t kill anyone for this,” Will added, though he looked less than thrilled with the turn this was taking.

_$300 - What is art?_

“Isn’t that the million-dollar question here,” the response came from Caleb who glanced at Will to see if he had anything to say.

_$500 - What makes an artist?_

“You sound like you’re a fan of the Midnight Killer,” Caleb continued, deciding he’d spare Will this question as well. “Daddy dearest has a fan, I wonder how he’d feel about that, actually.”  
  
Will laughed despite himself, “you’re still calling him that? I guess we’ve decided the Midnight Killer is a man.”

_$1,250 - Are beauty or morbidity really different from one another?_

“Do you want us to just come out and say it?” Will’s expression was almost a glare, though more akin to a pout and it was far from intentional. “Sure, I’ll admit, there’s some artistry to what the Midnight Killer is doing, but it’s horrifying and wrong.”  
  
“A side note,” piping up, Caleb looked directly into the camera, “we don’t condone murder just... putting that out there.”

_$5000 - How do you think this all will end?_

“Hopefully with this psychopath locked up,” Will grumbled, sitting back and all but handing the phone off to Caleb as the chat exploded in activity once more.  
  
“With justice for the victims,” Caleb continued with a small smile, being serious for a moment.  
  
_$10000 - One day, I will like an autograph as well : )_  
  
Will couldn’t put his finger on it, but he felt incredibly uneasy. It might have been his past of dealing with bad people, or perhaps he was simply paranoid from his past experiences. Either way, the final donation made the blood drain from his face. Caleb, meanwhile, kept up his air of nonchalance for both of their sakes.  
  
“Sure thing, Will has a few prints floating around his agency’s website,” even as Caleb spoke, Will flinched at the thought of another potential stalker. “I can sign them as well, of course, or whatever you want signed I guess.”  
  
“I think this concludes our Q and A session,” Will said as they reached their hour mark. “Our inbox is always open and we look forward to seeing you all next time, either here or on our individual channels.”  
  
“See you guys next time,” both Will and Caleb chimed as the stream then faded to black.  
  
The posting schedule for the Midnight Killer series seemed to follow a pattern of posting an analysis the evening or day after each murder, then a Q and A session the day after that. Outside of that, both Caleb and Will had a consistent posting schedule posted to each of their individual channels. Ultimately, until the Midnight Killer struck again, this particular channel wouldn’t post.

* * *

With the Q&A session coming to a close, Jayden found himself seated once again in the darkness and staring at a placeholder image. The exchange had been interesting, but ultimately frustrating. Everyone was so focused on the ‘crime’ or the ‘murder’, so shortsighted that they couldn’t truly understand or appreciate the beauty of the crime scene as a whole. It was disappointing, but more than that it was so damn frustrating. Leaning back in his chair, hands covering his face, it took everything in his power to not scream at the top of his lungs. Instead, he took in a deep breath. In and out, in then out, before he righted himself and replayed the session back from the beginning.  
  
At least he knew now the school that they attended which, surprisingly, was within driving distance for him. The two as well seemed far more clever than the police force, despite their incorrect opinions about his work. He wondered if it would be far more profitable for him to toy with them rather than the police. Maybe, just maybe, they would figure this all out and give him the grand unmasking that he so rightfully deserved.  
  
But first he needed to plan. Planning was what he was good at.  
  
-  
  
“Wait… wait… wait… wait... You wanted to do what now?” Later on that week, Jayden found himself seated outside of a nice french bakery in the downtown business district. A glass of mimosa in hand he just smiled politely as he took a small sip.  
  
“Why do you sound like this is going to be impossible? You’re already banging the dean of… whatever… at that school. Just call in a favor or something.” Opposite him was slender middle-aged woman, sipping away at a bloody mary. The light spring, flowery dress that she wore alongside the wide-brimmed hat atop her head gave her a certain elegance that was betrayed by the fact she was currently glaring as she sipped on her drink.  
  
“No it’s not impossible, but one, it’s mid-semester. All the favors in the world are not going to grant you a position there mid-semester. Two, I’m banging the Dean of Physics, not Dean of Arts. Three, why the hell do you even want to be an adjunct? You’ve got way better uses of your time, Jayden. An early thirty-something like you ought to be going to clubs and bachelor parties, not stressing out that handsome face of yours over some brats.”  
  
Jayden on the other hand just chuckled as he set down his glass. “I appreciate the concern. Believe me, Alice, ever since the thought popped into my head I’ve been trying to imagine every angle why I shouldn’t do it. But someone has to go out there and bring some goodwill back into our community. What with that murderer running around hellbent on slandering all of us. What better way than for one of our best and brightest to teach and comfort our up-and-coming artists and creative thinkers. Free of charge.” Alice set down her our drink as well after letting out a lengthy sigh. “Fine, but why me? Besides, you should be famous enough that you could march right into the art department and they’ll roll out the red carpet.”  
  
Jayden shrugged. “A friend helping out a friend. Sure I could do that. But wouldn’t it be better if you told that Dean of yours how you managed to secure one the city’s most influential artists for the school for free? You might finally be able to get him to drop that wife of his.” That was enough to cause her eyes to shine. “Well… I can certainly try. Remember though, I said he’s Physics not Arts. So no guarantees.” She paused then offered a sly wink and a wide smile. “You really think he’ll drop that little bitch though?” Jayden just laughed as he brought the glass back to his lips and downed the rest of his mimosa. “No doubt in my mind.”  
  
-  
  
The following week he found himself seated alongside nineteen others for the city’s latest art expo. Though the program’s original purpose was the showcasing of work of all of the latest artists and fashion designers, its modern-day purpose was more of a televised gathering of socialites and celebrities to flaunt their wealth to the cheers of an endless sea of fans. However with the Midnight Killer lurking about they needed to brainstorm a solid theme and gimmick to get people to actually come and enjoy themselves. For the past hour none of them really came up with anything substantial, and then Jayden had suggested that they simply pass around a piece of paper and write the most outlandish thing to pop into their heads.  
  
“Summer extravagance ... Dessert decadence… Beachtime Bliss…” The list was ultimately passed down and read by an elderly man in his eighties. Sir William rose to fame as a shrewd and unrelenting businessman who made his capital off the backs of a legion of overworked, and underpaid army of accountants, retail workers, real estate agents, and who even knew what else. He commanded the board of several large businesses that dotted the city - from financial firms, to nonprofits, to even the fashion and art industry. It was exactly because of the latter that he wound up the head of the board with full creative control over the expo. Year after year he invited all of the latest artists that were suggested and curated to him by his personal secretary, pick their brains for ideas, and then implement them all and give himself full credit.  
  
“...Garbage all garbage. And what the hell is this here I’m seeing about some sort of guillotine…?”  
  
Everyone else just looked at each other in confusion. Grumbling to himself, William passed the list of ideas across the table to see if it would jog any memories, though still no one spoke up about it. The suggestion didn’t even seem like it matched anyone else’s handwriting, however, on closer inspection, it looked almost identical to Sir William’s own. “Well… First, I just want to throw out that my idea for Champagne Shenanigans would be the talk of the town, but I can see the reasoning behind this. The youth are getting more political and respect and tolerance for the rich and famous is reaching an all-time low. A stunt where you roll out a guillotine, a golden one at that, and stage a beheading would blow up every single channel of social media.” Jayden stated as he glanced over the list of ideas carefully before passing it alone. “That is why you suggested it. Right, Sir William? Looks your handwriting.”  
  
“Whaaat?! Give me that!” The man declared then suddenly reached over and snatched the paper away to look over it himself. Initially, the idea seemed absolutely ridiculous, but given Jayden’s added reasoning the cogs inside of his mind began to slowly churn. “Yes, yes. I see. I remember now. Of course, this was my idea” The man declared to the group. “The expo’s theme will be nineteenth-century finery. Fancy ball-gowns, powdered wigs, and the ‘execution’ of yours truly.” He declared. “That is what those social media commentators have been wishing for, isn’t it? Well then, I say we give them exactly what it is they were craving. Grand! Truly Grand! It will be a giant middle-finger to all of those bastards on Twitter.”  
  
“Yes. And we can signal the occasion with a flurry of golden confetti. Actually the entire event should be gold.” Came a creative-writer who really was just a yes-man to stroke Sir William’s ego. “No No! White Gold! That there is true elegance.” Came another. “Nineteenth-century finery combined with current-year indulgence. Yes, I can see it. This will be true genius Sir William!” Came a third. Before long the entire room was abuzz with ideas, supporting Sir William’s ‘original’ idea. Jayden however just watched, smiling in his mind’s eye. He had expected and planned for the meeting to do in so many different ways, never did he suspect that things would go so smoothly.  
  
-  
  
In the weeks leading up to the grand expo, word or developments regarding the Midnight Killer or the murders of Roberto and his wife fell completely cold. The police continued their weekly press-conference, providing lip service and fancy terms to explain that they really, really didn’t have the slightly idea of what they were even looking for. And as the days passed since the murder of the Greenes the town became more and more tense and anxious. Almost a month had passed, signaling that it was almost time for the Midnight Killer to strike again. A member of their community would leave their house one night, and their families would find them days and weeks later, victims of some sort of sick and twisted art piece.  
  
Jayden, or rather Virtuoso777 and the anonymous benefactor, had fallen off the grid at that time as well. He kept tabs on the crime-solving duo’s personal feeds, binge-watched their earlier videos during his free time on weekends, but his focus was largely on ensuring that the grand expo went absolutely perfect. It would be his first live piece, something that would happen far too quickly, and too suddenly for the news to possibly censor. And best (and worst) of all, it technically wasn’t his idea. He wondered how the public would react to the spectacle, how the police would react, but most importantly, how the wanna-be crime-solvers would react. Especially given that he had gotten the idea directly from them. Bringing the modern guillotine crashing down atop of a rich asshole’s head, that was what one of them desired and he was more than happy to oblige him.  
  
The days leading up to the Expo were all handled very carefully. Since Sir William already had his idea, Jayden’s services were no longer needed. Apart from his own personalized invitation, he hadn’t even hard nary a word from the other expo planners, most likely by Sir William’s request. He overheard the man asking his secretary to burn the list of ideas and strike the names of everyone in attendance. So desperate to ensure that he and he alone could be credited for that year’s theme. The other might have been dismayed but Jayden was more than pleased by the man’s selfishness, it saved him so much work having to erase any involvement he had with the theme of that year. There was, of course, still the matter of the secretary herself, but he would deal with her via a follow-up piece once the investigation of Sir William’s demise was well underway.  
  
Currently, however, his task was to set up the scene without directly setting up the scene. Tricky. Luckily, however, he wasn’t outright banned from the premises during set-up. In fact, it was pretty common for others to come and go while the location was being prepared - some were just curious, others needed an idea of where their entrance would be, still, others absolutely refused to practice their catwalk anywhere but at the event venue itself. Jayden had used his free pass seemingly just to mingle, he had only come alongside his fellow associates to comment on their outfits or to judge the style of their entrances. The reality, however, was that he was investigating the scope of the guillotine stunt.  
  
What he had learned was extremely unfortunate. The guillotine itself was being custom-built, which was fine except for the fact that the blade was made of foam (though, it still looked strikingly similar to an actual blade). Sir William was to be seated atop a small plank of wood where he would be rolled underneath the guillotine, then once the blade came down he would be quickly pulled away. Even if that failed, the blade itself was still only made of foam so the elderly businessman was literally at no risk whatsoever. Jayden needed to make sure that the man would be kept still during the stunt, and somehow figure out a way to get the fake guillotine switched out with a genuine one.  
  
Eventually, he realized that he didn’t even need to switch out the guillotine, but rather just the blade itself. A seemingly innocent inquiry with the staff allowed both himself and his friends access to the props behind-the-scenes. And while the lot of them were discussing and distracted, he took the opportunity to wander off and find the set-up of the guillotine and any replaceable parts that might have been nearby. After snooping around for any cameras, he searched around for the stockpile of replaceable blades and casually grabbed them all and tossed the entire crate of them into the bottom of a dumpster out in the alleyway. He never touched the guillotine himself, there wouldn’t be any need to do so before the night of the event itself. Though before leaving, he made sure to take a minor detour to the back alley to steal away one of the fake blades for himself  
  
He was present for the dry-run the night before the big event. Though the maintenance staff seemed a bit troubled, likely due to the missing props, the practice run went without a hitch. Sir William was ‘trapped’ in the guillotine, the last remaining foam blade came crashing down atop his head, and he was safely pulled away before the cushy prop even touched his wrinkled skin. The group clapped and cheered, they practiced their walks in their gowns and dresses, and drank bottles and bottles of champagne well into the night, partying and cheering all the while. Jayden pretended to do exactly the same, though apart from the initial toast he made absolutely sure not to drink another drop. There were key moves that he needed to make and only a short window of time to make them.  
  
When the majority of the crowd drunk out of their minds, he quickly and quietly excused himself and made his way backstage. While everyone on the main floor was busy partying and socializing, behind the scenes everyone happened to be very much at work and getting everything ready once again for the main event the following day. Sipping on his glass of wine, he just casually moved through the men and women dashing and forth, none of them actually noticing him, until he noticed a group of three slowly wheeling the guillotine back to its proper place backstage.  
  
Still sipping his drink ever so casually he passed by the guillotine and made his way back into the alleyway where he retrieved a black duffle bag that he had hidden away the night prior. Taking a moment to quickly open it, he pulled out a saw blade nearly identical to the fake blades (albeit a bit smaller). Tucking it in between his arm, he casually made his way back inside to the sea of workers and stagehands and set the sawblade against a table nearest the guillotine. He lingered around for a moment afterward, finishing his glass then quickly tugged against the foam blade, tore it away, and then casually walked out and tossed it into a dumpster in the back alley as well. By the time he reentered one of the stagehands, confused but far too busy to care, was already hooking up the actual blade to the guillotine.  
  
The actual day of the event was fantastic. Despite the threat of Midnight Killer celebrities and socialites from all over gathered downtown, each wearing the finest of Victorian-era fashions. All in powders wigs and powdered faces, puffy dresses and tailored suits, most if not all not properly respecting the nineteenth-century theme. Crowds of fans lined barricades of metals as they cheered and took selfies of their favorite stars and starlets, celebrities and influencers, as they made their grand entrances and showed off their grand gowns and outfits. Likewise, television vans and announcers lined the streets, all heatedly and eagerly announcing the latest person to take to the carpet for the viewers at home.  
  
It was just over three hours before those most important were all settled inside and listening to the keynote speech. As the announcer droned on and on, patting himself and everyone else on the back Jayden was once more backstage. For the occasion, he had on a masquerade mask and tailored tux, not properly honoring the correct timeline of the theme but like the others didn’t even care. As the others were getting Sir William ready for his best, and final, stunt, Jayden moved closer and handed the stage manager an ‘updated’ itinerary. According to the update, apparently signed by the full board of directors themselves, to be respectful of the victims of the Midnight Murderer they were downgrading the stunt from something suspenseful to something humorous. Sir William was to remain in place, the blade was to come down on his head, gently bop him against the neck and then dangle there midair harmlessly and comically to the chuckle and laughter of the audience.  
  
By the time the manager had finished reading, Jayden was already gone. And rather than try to argue, especially given that there were only seconds before they were live, she went along with it. The signatures all looked valid, there was no real risk involved in this as far as she was aware, and attempts to try to ask Sir William himself all resulted in her being cursed and badmouthed for attempting to ruin his scene.  
  
After the opening speech had completed, a deathly silence fell across the crowd. The guillotine was rolled onto the stage with Sir William rolled directly underneath. The elderly man looked quite pleased and amused with himself during these final moments, he was supposed to be acting fearful and shocked but he couldn’t hide the joy he was experiencing for giving himself the opportunity to finally be able to piss off all of his whiny critics and social commentators. He made a badly-rehearsed speech where he acted as a caricature of himself, praising his money, wealth and glory then without a moment of pause the blade came crashing down atop his neck.  
  
A dark and heavy silence fell across the room. Sir William was not pulled away and the blade did not bounce off of his neck harmlessly and comically. His head had clearly been severed for both the crowd and the viewers at home (before the studios all suddenly cut to emergency broadcast in a panic), where it then landed with a soft thud and started rolling harmlessly across the wooden floors, bleeding all the while. A second later, joyous music started to play, white and gold confetti and balloons rained down happily onto the shocked and terrified crowd as blood continued seeping out of the headless corpse that now laid slumped behind the guillotine.  
  
It was a good thirty seconds before the first shrill scream could be heard, far louder and sharper than the music that played, and not long afterward many others followed. Soon enough, the once-joyous crowd had turned into a full-blown panic of screams and tears as they desperately pushed and shoved past each other to find an exit, any exit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	3. Sir William

Over the weeks in which the anonymous donor and Virtuoso777 had disappeared, Caleb and Will had focused on their own channels a bit more. Will posted a new urbex video, featuring himself and two mutual friends in an abandoned asylum, as well as multipart series about haunted locations nearby. Caleb, meanwhile, had covered a few cold cases, offering theories that hadn’t been considered before and going as far as to pick long-dead suspects he believed to be the culprits.  
  
The personal social media accounts had updates pertaining to their channels, though as Halloween came and passed there was a peak of activity featuring a somewhat outrageous horror-themed lakeside party. With the large donation, Caleb had insisted they go all out that night. Even weeks later campus was still buzzing about it. After the Midnight Killer had begun his reign of terror, parties had been toned down and borderline dull. To go all out with the horror theme on Halloween night, when people had been extra vigilant, had been deemed insane by their friends. Still, clearly the entire student body had wanted to cut loose.  
  
Aside from maintaining their YouTube presence and one major party, Will and Caleb had been preoccupied with school work. Along the way, they had somewhat pushed thoughts of Virtuoso, the Midnight Killer, and their anonymous donor to the backs of their minds. That all changed the morning after a guillotine ‘accident’ occurred on live TV.  
  
“Hello and welcome back,” Caleb started his usual greeting and Will gave the camera a little wave as the livestream started up. “As you have all probably heard, the Midnight Killer has struck again.”  
  
“Heard or _saw_,” Will added, creating an unintentional pun. “The video keeps getting taken down off of YouTube and social media as quickly as people can post it.”  
  
“...Do you know how many people probably saw it _live?” _Caleb asked, feeling somewhat giddy over the latest development.  
  
“I’ve got to say, the Midnight Killer is upping his game,” the giddiness didn’t seem to be limited to Caleb as Will seemed somewhat more upbeat as well.  
  
“There are some people out there insisting this was just a freak accident,” the blond cut in, frowning at that, not believing that rumor in the slightest.  
  
“Who the actual fuck just _accidentally_ leaves a live blade laying around and attaches it to a guillotine?” Grinning, Will mentally thought back to the news that had broken out over the event. “This had to have been staged and with the themeing and everything, not to mention literally cutting some rich prick’s head off, this had to have been the Midnight Killer.”  
  
“Other people are suggesting someone just had it out for Sir William,” pausing, Caleb grinned. “I don’t doubt that plenty of people wanted to lop Sir William’s head off, but for the same reasons as you, I’m certain that _Daddy_ had a hand in this.”  
  
“Oh my god, can you not call him that?” Will complained, though couldn’t contain his laughter. “People might think you have a weird crush on him.”  
  
“What, like those weirdo Ted Bundy fangirls?” Caleb laughed. “What if _Daddy_ looks like the phantom of the opera though? I’m not sure if I can go for a guy who looks like the Crypt Keeper.”  
  
“Anyway,” the brunette said, deciding they should talk about the actual case rather than amuse themselves by poking fun at any number of things. “We should get into your analysis,” Will said, giving a nod to Caleb’s casefile.  
  
“I’m not even sure where to start,” the blond murmured, smiling a little as he leafed through his case file. “This is a departure from his previous methods. For one, this is the first murder where he didn’t directly kill the victim, though I’m sure he staged it. Which, by the way, only furthers my belief this guy is an art community insider or at least was at the expo where the murder happened.”  
  
“Did you know the police are trying to rule this one an accident?” Will said, sounding almost irate. “Like...it was some careless thing, but...” He bit his lip, not wanting to outright say what he was thinking.  
  
“I’ll just say it then,” the blond sighed, pretending to seem exasperated with Will’s hesitance when Will rarely hesitated. “I’ll admit, for the both of us, that there is something poetic about a rich dickhead losing his head to a guillotine while surrounded by a bunch of other rich assholes dressed up like aristocrats.”  
  
“So, it makes sense that the Midnight Killer,” Will paused, daring Caleb to call the murderer ‘daddy’ again, “is an artist or familiar with the community and might have had a hand in setting this all up. This guy had to have been familiar with Sir William, but also with the last victim, Roberto Greene.”  
  
“I keep saying it,” Caleb said, genuinely sounding frustrated. “The police need to interview friends and family, or at least close-ish acquaintances, not search blindly for someone who had it out for these people.”  
  
“I believe you have a timeline, suspects, and theories?” Will asked, leading them into the more analytic part of the analysis video.  
  
“Well, I suppose that’s my cue to get on with it,” Caleb agreed as he went into the timeline.  
  
It appeared that just after the murder the police and EMTs arrived on scene. Of course, there had been an attempt at crowd control, there had even been an attempt at trying to contain everything. Beyond that, the media and other powers that be had tried to suppress the video of Sir William’s head popping off as the saw blade slammed down onto it.  
  
“It was like the chandelier scene from the Phantom of the Opera meets a Tarantino film with a dash of an eighties slasher flick.” Will would deny he was gushing, but he was gushing. “...I’m not condoning dropping a chandelier on a theater audience or burning a theater full of people alive.”  
  
“Unless those people are Nazis,” Caleb quipped. “I don’t think I’d be too broken up if the Midnight Killer lit some skinhead fascist on fire. ...Obviously murder is bad though.”  
  
_“‘Cool motive, still murder.’”_ The brunette tossed in, knowing full well they weren’t about to deliberately give ideas to potential copycat killers.  
  
Will and Caleb continued on, going back and forth with the investigative part of things with the occasional break into humor to lighten the mood. The chat was still as active as it ever was, though they didn’t seem to pay nearly as much attention to it as they did during their Q and As. Some of Caleb’s giddiness seemed contagious in the chat and combined with Will’s enthusiasm, the chat conversation was steering towards the popular ‘eat the rich’ mentality.  
  
“So, that’s all I have for this case,” Caleb said, knowing the hour was almost up. “As usual, our Q and A will occur tomorrow at this time.”  
  
“See you guys tomorrow,” the two of them concluded, giving the camera a wave as the stream ended.  
  
“So...” Caleb began as the cameras were off and it was just him and Will again. “Remember how we mentioned the bit about a guillotine before?”  
  
“...I remember,” Will said, quietly. “I mean, it could be a coincidence, The Midnight Killer does have his gimmick and it was only a matter of time before he went all French Revolution on some would-be aristocrat.”  
  
“Staging it to happen live was a new touch,” the blond murmured, “it’s certainly _cinematic.”_  
  
“Well, the crime scene photos have been mostly censored by the media,” Will insisted, almost sounding defensive, “it just makes sense he’d do _something _to get attention to the crime scenes again.”  
  
“I don’t doubt it,” Caleb relented, easing off. “You know I lean towards the idea that all serial killers secretly want to be caught, or at least recognized to some degree.”  
  
“I know,” Will said quietly as he went about straightening up their studio. “By the way, I’ve been thinking about our senior thesis project,” he added, changing subjects just a bit. “Do you think the professor would let us submit a joint project about the Midnight Killer?”  
  
“I don’t see why not,” thinking it over, Caleb couldn’t think of a good reason why they’d be denied. “Researchers collaborate all the time and since I’ve been working on the case files and reports for the journalism end of things and you have the videos for the film studies end...”  
  
“I think a combined project would be stronger than you writing a report for your thesis and me submitting a summary video of all our work.” the brunette concluded, knowing once they had a chance they’d just have to ask if they could submit the thing together rather than as two separate projects on the Midnight Killer.  
  
“Next time we meet up with the professor, we can ask,” Caleb agreed.

* * *

Despite the city being once more abuzz with activity, Jayden himself wasn’t too satisfied with his latest work. Aside from not having full creative control over what had happened, there were far too many aspects that were reliant on pure luck. What would have happened had Sir William never taken to his initial suggestion? What if one of the busy stagehands noticed him tampering with the guillotine? The stage manager could have easily second-guessed the updated memo he had given, things would have continued as planned and nothing would have happened despite all of his planning and manipulations. The payout was, of course, grand but the work leading up to it was built on such a flimsy foundation that he couldn’t help but feel dissatisfied.  
  
  
This would all change the moment he received an alert on his phone that his favorite pair of streamers were once again in front of the camera.  
  
Unlike the prior stream tackling the situation with the Greenes, this particular viewing Jayden watched alone. Normally his own group would have started making plans for a discussion session, however, this particular ‘murder’ hit far too close to home. For one, many had already convinced themselves that it was just a freak accident, believing it impossible that someone as powerful as Sir William could be a victim of the Midnight Killer. As such, there was nothing for them to discuss. Others simply didn’t want to be reminded of the event. Many of them had been front-and-center when the man had his head lopped off, blood spraying every which way. Tormented and traumatized, they had temporarily retreated to the privacy of their own lives to try and cope with the horrors they had just gone through.  
  
Alone, Jayden watched as the two took to the screen with their usual, humorous banter. This time around, however, he couldn’t help but notice just how giddy and excited they seemed. It felt almost as if they were celebrating his work this time around. They still had their typical incorrect opinions, calling his art ‘murder’ and his subjects ‘victims’, but it definitely looked like approval was in their eyes. Or at least that was his takeaway, a product of his own delusions.  
  
As time passed, Jayden found himself smiling as the two continued. Whatever sourness that he had coming into the stream was all but gone by that point. It helped as well that the blonde still insisted on calling him ‘daddy’. Jokingly or not, he found himself taking the nickname somewhat seriously. It made him feel trusted, needed, desired…  
  
The stream would eventually come to a close with the two once again making the recommendation that the police needed to go after the art community rather than Sir William’s numerous personal enemies. A wise and correct piece of advice that Jayden knew would likely fall upon deaf ears yet again. He had no plans to follow the investigation of this particular art piece as he had little reason to believe that the authorities would even come close to figuring out it was him. Last he heard, they had arrested the stage manager and were now desperately trying to link her to the other killings.  
  
For the longest time afterward, Jayden sat there in silence, leaning back in his chair as he ran through his head everything that had just happened. He had planned to go after the secretary next to make sure that she remained silent - it would keep the conspiracy surrounding the expo’s events on everyone’s lips, and would hopefully let everyone know that the guillotine stunt was no mere accident. But then he wondered what was to come next.  
  
The duo recommended a scene inside of a theater, nazis burning and screaming as their surrounding foundations came crashing down around them all. Comical, theatrical, impossible. He could easily set up an arson but there was no way to ensure that the building would be filled with nazis. He didn’t even know of any practicing nazis, and he certainly wasn’t one. All people from all backgrounds and walks of life were worthy of his art in his eyes. However, he wondered that maybe he didn’t even need a crowd. Maybe he just needed someone infamous enough to properly get the point across  
  
He paused after that thought, however, and just sat there tapping his fingers against his lips impatiently. He knew where this was headed and he wondered where exactly was the line to be drawn. At what point was he no longer creating art and was simply following the whims of two famous live streamers? Them pointing and him killing. Now that was murder. However, there was a different angle he could approach this. If he instead thought of this more as a collaboration it made far more sense in his mind. The three of them all working together, what a nice thought that was.  
  
After a good hour he finally moved and put on a playlist of their combined videos, filling the room once again with their voices, Jayden made his way near his balcony where a newly bought blank canvas sat atop of an easel. There were plans that needed to be made, but first there was art that needed to be created. He would create the perfect scene of terror, a crowd of desperate aristocrats all fleeing a most brutal beheading. He thought back to the planning committee and remembered the one artist that had suggested that the theme be in white gold. He hummed to himself as he glanced over the palettes of colors available, that actually didn’t sound like such a bad idea for this piece.  
  
  
-  
  
  
The following day, Jayden found himself once again seated outside of a french bakery. Once again sipping on a mimosa, Alice opposite of him and once again sipping on a bloody mary. “So!” She continued, branching off into a different conversation. “Guess who just left the office of the city’s most sought-after divorce attorney?”  
  
“Interesting, considering you were in the arms of that CFO at the expo.” Jaden replied with a chuckle, then quickly took another sip.  
  
“Oh don’t remind me.” She scoffed. “Worst first date ever. That man can puff out his chest and fire an entire department without batting an eye but the moment you put him in front of a beheading he runs off like a cowering sissy. Speaking of which, I got blood all over my ensemble. I’ve got an appointment planned with my personal lawyer to figure out what kind of compensation I can get out of this whole debacle. Money for pain and suffering of course, like everyone else, but there has to be something extra for having to deal with that old bastard ruining designer chic.”  
  
“Ah yes. A public execution streamed for the masses, and the worst thing to come out of it for you is a ruined dress.”  
  
“Of course. I tried courting Sir William a few years ago, I couldn’t tolerate two months of the man. And I can tolerate a lot of shit, Jayden. No one is going to mourn that old fool once the shock and awe of all of this dies down.” She grumbled and finished off the rest of her drink. “But back to more important matters. My darling dean signed away his marriage without any hesitation. And soon I will be married. Again!”  
  
“And let us all hold a moment of silence for the bank-account of that poor soul.”  
  
“Oh, don’t put the full blame on me. This was all your doing. I made my suggestion, just as you asked, and we had our discussions. I have him utterly convinced that I truly care about academia and now he can’t dream of a life without me.”  
  
“That’s great, really, but what actually became of that wonderful suggestion of mine?”  
  
“Oh! Yeah, they’re not accepting professors mid-semester.” She gave a dismissive half-shrug as she spoke. “But! But! I had some lengthy talks with the Dean of Arts. Wonderful woman, she does this thing with her tongue that is just…”  
  
“...Do you honestly think I really want to know?  
  
“...It’s far more innocent than the stuff you do at those drug-fueled sex parties you attend… ”  
  
“No idea what you’re talking about.” Alice glared at him. “But… point-taken.”  
  
“Skipping over the details of our many, many nights of pleasure. She thinks it might be a good idea for you to join the campus as a guest speaker. Weekly, maybe monthly sessions, depending on your schedule. You’ll be able to get to know the students and get some experience under your belt. By the time next semester rolls around you’ll be pretty much guaranteed a spot on staff.”  
  
“Disappointing but fair.” Jayden nodded as he finished off the rest of his drink. “You can let her know I’m interested. Next time you make her cry out give her my regards.” He joked, getting a small chuckle out of his friend.  
  
“You know, if I didn’t know you as well as I did, I’d say you’re really only doing this to get into the pants of some of the students. There are so many easier avenues for someone to take for that sort of thing.” She sighed. “But you do love your work. Sometimes I just wish I could empathize with that optimism that you have.”  
  
-  
  
Jayden would then spend the following day diligently pouring over his latest creation, making sure it was absolutely perfect. Already bidding was well underway and thus far had experienced a far greater flurry of activity than usual. It was surprising at first, but entirely understandable once he thought over it. The guillotine stunt had been broadcast live to pretty much millions, and all of the celebrities and socialites of the city were in direct attendance. If no one knew of the Midnight Killer before, they definitely did now. It was glorious but also painful. He had achieved national recognition, but solely under the guise of anonymity. And under that dreadful name the media had given him as well. He wished that they had simply taken from pointers from Caleb and opted to just call him daddy instead.  
  
He only paused when the sun fell below the horizon and it came time once again for the Q&A session. Just as before he was seated in front of the laptop, beer in hand, as he waited ever so patiently for the two to be back online. The recordings and videos were nice, but it was far more satisfying seeing them live. Their smiling faces, both chatting and laughing and enjoying each other’s company. It was just so engrossing, how he wished he could be there in person as well.  
  
When it came time for the question segment he signed back into Virtuoso777, and once again did his best to try and blend in with the others.

  * $50 - There are some rumors going around that you inspired the Midnight Killer this time around. What are your thoughts on this?
  * $20 - If this isn’t coincidence though, based on your discussion yesterday it would mean that the next murder will likely involve a theater and nazis. Are you prepared for the potential consequences of your words?
  * $75 - This would also mean that you are being watched by the Midnight Killer, right? They could be in this chat right now.
  * (anonymous) $2 - What do you think they look like? On a scale of James Bond (or Bond Girl) to one of those gnarly mutants in the Hills Have Eyes?
  * $35 - If you could say anything directly to the Midnight Killer about this latest stunt, what would it be?
  * $20 - What was your reaction when you saw it happen?
  * $50 - It doesn’t seem like very many people liked this ‘Sir William’ guy. Some even seem pleased over what happened…. Are either of you pleased?

Again, later on the questions became vaguer and anonymous. Some of them weren’t even questions.

  * $250 - Wasn’t it beautiful?
  * $750 - What are your favorite colors?
  * $425 - Daddy ; )
  * $500 - I can still hear their screams…
  * $1000 - Do you still hear their screams?
  * $5000 - I wonder how you scream…?
  * $5001 - How you moan…?
  * $5002 - I want to hear you both...
  * $5003 - Such sweet sounds....
  * $5004 - Such soft skin….
  * $5005 - Such beautiful eyes...
  * $5006 - Call me daddy again

Jayden, his eyes fully locked onto the screen at that point, had filled out yet another donation only to realize it was blocked. The mods had apparently prevented any future donations given how creepy the messages were starting to get, and how large the amounts were starting to get.

* * *

“Hello and welcome back,” Caleb read out the customary greeting as the Q and A session stream started up. “Today we’re going over questions and answers you guys might have had over our last video covering the Midnight Killer’s latest crime.”

_$50 - There are some rumors going around that you inspired the Midnight Killer this time around. What are your thoughts on this?_

“Oh hey, Virtuoso777 is back,” reading over the first question for Caleb and himself, Will felt himself contemplating their coverage of the Greene’s case and how it might connect to what happened to Sir William. “I don’t know, do _you _think the Midnight Killer is kicked back watching YouTube for ideas right now?”  
  
“Maybe there’s a grain of truth to the idea we might have inspired the Midnight Killer,” the blond responded, then paused. “I don’t really believe in coincidences, but then there are loads of people who probably wanted to watch Sir William lose his head, just look Twitter.”  
  
“I’m sure people are thrilled Sir William is burning in Hell right now,” the brunette affirmed with a nod. “Not that Hell is real, I’m speaking metaphorically, Sir William is just a headless corpse in a box six feet under.”

_$20 - If this isn’t coincidence though, based on your discussion yesterday it would mean that the next murder will likely involve a theater and nazis. Are you prepared for the potential consequences of your words?_

“Where the fuck is he going to find a theater full of Nazis?” Once again, Will read the question for Caleb and the camera, though he just looked confused. “Unless he wants to move from regular old homicide to arson and find the nearest far-right rally loaded with racists and homophobes I can’t see this happening.”  
  
“Let’s be honest though,” Caleb quipped, “he’d be doing the world a favor.”  
  
“While ripping off Tarantino,” Will added quickly.  
  
“Right, you could just as easily say the Midnight Killer watched ‘Les Miserables’ and ‘Inglourious Basterds’ one too many times.” After the words left his mouth, Caleb seemed to consider something. “You don’t think Virtuoso is a reporter or something?”

_$75 - This would also mean that you are being watched by the Midnight Killer, right? They could be in this chat right now._

“Hmm,” again, Will read the question for Caleb and the other viewers that might not be paying attention to the chat.  
  
“I mean, my mother could be watching us right now,” the blond said with a laconic shrug. “Which is much more terrifying in my opinion.”  
  
“I honestly hope he’s not watching,” Will murmured, “I don’t want a homicidal maniac stalking me.”

_(anonymous) $2 - What do you think they look like? On a scale of James Bond (or Bond Girl) to one of those gnarly mutants in the Hills Have Eyes?_

“Hey Caleb,” Will asked with a grin, “do you think the Midnight Killer is ten out of ten or some sort of deformed mutant?”  
  
“I’m hoping _daddy’s _ten out of ten,” Caleb said, earning a disgusted groan from Will. “Or I don’t think it’ll work out between us.”  
  
“...You know if he is watching us he’s been hearing you call him that this entire time,” the grin faltered from Will’s face.

_$35 - If you could say anything directly to the Midnight Killer about this latest stunt, what would it be?_

“What would I say to the Midnight Killer?” Will read the question over, still thinking for a long moment.  
  
“...Don’t kill people?” Caleb offered, giving the camera an odd look. “Murder is wrong, stop it...?”  
  
“Congrats, Caleb, you’ve ended the Midnight Killer’s reign of terror,” Will quipped sarcastically. “If he is watching I’d insist on him not stalking us, or like...maybe he should find a different hobby? One that doesn’t involve killing people.”  
  
“Oh but the question is about his ‘latest stunt,’” Caleb chimed. “Well, it’s certainly more interesting than his previous murders.”  
  
“I still just don’t want a murderous psychopath watching us,” Will said with a shake of his head. “I guess...good job picking a victim no one will mourn? Better than orphaning some kid.”

_$20 - What was your reaction when you saw it happen?_

“Our reactions when it happened...” reading the question, Will thought back to watching a recording of it the first time he’d heard what had happened. “I was already prepared because I just got a recording of it, didn’t see it live.”  
  
“If I’m going to be honest, I laughed,” the blond added as input. “But then I didn’t think it was real when I first saw it live.”  
  
“I suppose I thought there was some justice in the world when it happened,” Will said with a shrug, not wanting to get into this question too deep. “I mean, did anyone even like Sir William? As far as everyone on Twitter is concerned it’s a good riddance kind of situation.”

_$50 - It doesn’t seem like very many people liked this ‘Sir William’ guy. Some even seem pleased over what happened…. Are either of you pleased?_

Will read the question once, then just frowned for a long moment. He wasn’t sure he liked where this was going, though so far Virtuoso had had an interesting series of questions. Overall, Will didn’t like having to think about how the murders made him feel, so he gave a noncommittal shrug.  
  
“One less leech at the top,” Caleb said simply, unable to stop his smile from widening marginally.  
  
For a while, as Virtuosos’ questions concluded, Will and Caleb took turns answering a few more lighthearted questions or speculations from fans. While doing so, Will pushed back the unease he felt at the suggestion that the Midnight Killer could be watching their streams. Caleb, meanwhile, remained as flippant and cavalier as ever.  
  
Later, when the anonymous donor made an appearance with his first question, Will’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. He hadn’t expected such a large sum, though the question itself made him feel slightly ill. The following question, about their favorite colors, made him frown.  
  
“I wouldn’t call it _beautiful,” _Will said with distaste, forgetting to read the question for Caleb who looked at him oddly. “Purple’s great, Caleb’s more of a blue kind of guy...”  
  
The next donation came in, along with a winking face emote and the word ‘daddy’ and Will felt his stomach drop. The next few non-questions came pouring in and Will felt the color drain from his face and his world start to spin around him. Caleb seemed to realize something was wrong when Will stopped speaking and started to tremble, slowly at first then, it became noticeable on camera.  
  
In a flurry, a few different things happened. Caleb had grabbed Will’s phone, saw the messages, and for a moment looked horrified. He then quickly went for the controller to end the stream, but fumbled it and in a panic got up and went to turn the camera off directly as he didn’t know the remote controls. The feed died with Caleb filling up the screen and the sound of violent retching heard in the background.

~~~

“**_Fuck,_** you need to _stop calling him daddy_,” Will muttered as he wiped away the bits of vomit and spit clinging to his lips. “That...that had to have been him, the guy sending us the insane amounts of money has to be the Midnight Killer.”  
  
“We don’t know that,” Caleb said, trying to sound reasonable as he helped Will up, careful to avoid stepping into the puddle of vomit on the cement floor of their basement. “It could have been some asshole with too much time and money who wanted to mess with us.”  
  
“You don’t really believe that,” the brunette insisted as the pair made their way upstairs and into the hallway leading to their living room. “If that guy is him, then we can confirm he’s got money to throw away.”  
  
“Art freak with money narrows it down a bit,” the blond replied, “I mean, not really but I feel we can confirm certain aspects of the killer’s profile if this is him.”  
  
Detouring into the downstairs bathroom, Caleb went to grab some tissues before handing them off to Will. Will, meanwhile, had taken a seat on the living room couch and was curled in on himself. Caleb hadn’t seen his friend this distraught since the stalking incident a while back. Thinking back to what the creepy comments, the blond could only guess the whole mess triggered a few different memories for Will.  
  
“Come on, we’ve probably pissed off loads of the rich and famous,” the blond said, taking a seat beside Will. “One of them has to be butthurt we accused them of being the Midnight Killer.”  
  
“What about what Virtuoso said?” The brunette asked suddenly, looking up from his knees. “Maybe the Midnight Killer **_is_** watching us.”  
  
“Maybe I’ll do a striptease next time,” Caleb quipped, clearly joking, but it earned a glare from Will. “Seriously though, there’s not much we can do about an anonymous donor and if this fucker wants to throw money at us, let him. ...Next time I think it’d be best if I held the phone, just to filter out the creepiness.”  
  
“I think I need some water,” Will said after a moment, “and a shower, and a long night of sleep.”  
  
“Sure thing,” the blond said while getting up, going to grab a glass of water from the kitchen. “Don’t forget, the professor said he had some sort of special announcement tomorrow,” Caleb said, referring to the professor overseeing their thesis’ progress. “Something I’ve heard the Dean is also excited about I guess.”  
  
Around an hour later, both Will and Caleb headed upstairs to the room they shared. Will wandered off to shower and change and Caleb simply changed into his nightclothes before crawling into his bed. No words were exchanged as Will came out of the bathroom and likewise crawled into his bed. The blond slept easily, while the brunette tossed and turned. Eventually, Caleb woke to the sound of his name and cracked his eyes open to stare over at Will. Once again, no words were exchanged as Caleb got out of bed and went to lay beside Will. It wasn’t long before they both fell into a deep slumber until the following morning.

~~~

The next day, Will and Caleb had gotten up bright and early for class. Caleb was dressed as he normally was, and after he was sure Will was going to be okay, he was right back to his carefree self. Will’s school ensemble was much neater and organized compared to the ripped jeans and t-shirts he usually wore in their free time and on stream. After what had happened the previous night, he was also much more guarded. Either way, when they got to class both were curious about whatever announcement their professor was going to make and what could have the Dean also excited.  
  
“I bet they’re renovating the concert hall,” Caleb tossed out as Will and he took their usual seats towards the front but to the far side by the window.  
  
“Do you really think they’d make a big deal out of that?” Will asked, wondering as well. “What we really need are better sound booths in the film studies building.”  
  
Regardless of their speculation, and the speculation of other students around them, they’d more than likely find out soon enough what had the Dean and their professor so excited.

* * *

For the longest time, Jayden had sat there clicking, and clicking and clicking and the donation just didn’t go through. Furthermore, the livestream was in utter chaos. Will acted like he had seen a ghost and Caleb was now desperately trying to get a grip on the situation. It all culminated into a quick and abrupt end to the broadcast - some fumbling, some crashing and some less-than-pleasant sounds in the background. Once again, Jayden was left sitting there staring at a placeholder image until their next live broadcast.  
  
“They didn’t even wish to see me again next time…” He said quietly to himself, oblivious to the panic and chaos that had ensued at the end of the stream. If anything, the man sounded almost hurt. He had nothing but compliments and money to throw at them and it just resulted in the stream being ended early. Was this rejection? He wondered as he felt a deep, uneasy feeling at the pit of his stomach. However, he shook his head quickly. “No.. no.. no way…” He whispered to himself repeatedly, shaking his head robotically. At this stage of his life and career, no one would ever dare to reject him. This must have been just some sort of misunderstanding, yeah that was it that it was. Will just must have had something bad for lunch, that was all that this was.  
  
Heaving out a length sigh, Jayden slowly pulled back and ran a hand slowly through his hair. Immediately he noticed that he was sweating, his skin extremely warm. He paused and then brought two fingers to his neck where he realized that his pulse was currently racing as well. His pants felt uncomfortable, tighter, as his member strained against the fabric. His eyes immediately darted back to the screen, instinctively reaching for the mouse going straight for the donation button again, however again it was blocked. Several more times he had tried, and several more times he was still blocked. After clicking and attempting god even knew how many times, he just slunk back into his chair defeated and slowly reached for his phone and went through his list of contacts.  
  
So many people there were, and none of them even interested in at that moment. Eventually, he just settled for whomever thought was closest and gave them a call.  
  
“Thomas, I’m coming over. Be ready in ten.” He said, feeling far too grumpy and miserable to bother putting on his usual charming facade. The voice on the other end sounded tired, tired and confused. Then there was a sudden shift of movement where he started stammering.  
  
“Wait… wait.. Wait… Jayden, what? I have the wife here, come the fuck on.”  
  
“And I said be ready in ten.” He repeated angrily then immediately disconnected. Marching up and away from his laptop, he just grabbed a light jacket and left out, slamming the door angrily behind him.  
  
-  
  
The following day, Jayden had long since cooled. Clad in his usual tailored suit, he walked alongside the Dean of Arts as she happily, and frantically, continued her tour of the school grounds. They weren’t alone either, there was a group of art students not-so-subtly following behind him.  
  
“Really. You need to calm yourself down, Dorris. The way you’re acting I fear that you’re going to end up with a heart attack…” The woman chuckled just a bit too hard and then casually waved her hand in the air to dismiss his concerns, however with how quick her actions were it looked instead like she was fanning them both. “Believe me I am trying, but this is like… meeting the President, the Queen herself! Your idols don’t just simply pop up out of the blue and into your life!”  
  
“Idol? I’m far younger than you..." He said helplessly, then turned around and glanced at the group of students following his tracks. “...and are they always going to be like this? Really I am just some guy who came from a small town, the department doesn’t need to be acting like this…”  
  
“Leave it to the modern-day Picasso to be so modest!" (Jayden immediately scoffed and pinched the bridge of his nose.) "And I have told you I have been trying to remain calm for the past two hours! Wait wait… Bridgette! Bridgette dear!” She immediately hurried on ahead and grabbed a freshman who had been hiding behind a nearby tree. ”Jayden, Bridgette! She is an absolute wonder, and we would be so delighted if you had a chance to review one of her sculptures!”  
  
Jayden just cracked an uneasy smile and gave a non-committal ‘Yes, of course’ that seemed enough to cause the student to turn a deep red and suddenly flee. They barely managed another couple of steps before the Dean flagged down yet another student, causing Jayden to quietly groan.  
  
-  
  
After some difficulty, he managed to tear himself away from the Art Dean and his legion of fans. And by ‘tearing himself away’ he excused himself to the men’s bathroom and hid inside in the hopes that the others would leave. The others, unfortunately, didn’t leave and continued hovered outside of the restroom like a pack of vultures.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	4. Jayden Mattis I

“So let me get this straight,” Caleb said as their first-class let out and the students filed out of the classroom. “Everyone’s got a massive hard-on because some pretentious artist is going to be a guest speaker here?”  
  
“Caleb, keep your voice down,” Will hissed as a few nearby art students gave them the stink eye. “He’s actually very well known,” he added, softly as the two of them walked across the courtyard. “And his work isn’t jam splattered on a canvas or some other overrated bullshit,” as he spoke, Will typed ‘_Jayden Mattis_’ into his phone and pulled up images of the man in question as well as photos of his previous works to show Caleb. “You might get us lynched bad-mouthing him.”  
  
“At least we’re getting additional credit for going to his lectures,” the blond seemed at least pleased with that. “Oh, and you just _know_ that this Mattis guy has to have brushed shoulders with the Midnight Killer before. I wonder which of his friends _he_ thinks could be the killer...”  
  
“Professor Stevens did suggest at least meeting him,” Will murmured, knowing full well that their professor didn’t want them flinging the Midnight Killer stuff at Jayden. Knowing full well that they both suspected someone higher up in the art community had to have been behind the murders. “I’m sure we’ll have to wait in line considering how everyone’s acting right now.”  
  
“Everyone’s acting like Beyonce is visiting… Oh well, If nothing else Mattis is at least good looking. Okay, here’s the plan,” Caleb started as they entered a building where they had two separate classes. “After this class, we’re going to find Mr. Wanna-be-Van-Gogh and we’re going to _try_ to get close to him, maybe we can get some insider insight into the murders.”  
  
“We might get a restraining order,” the brunette cut in as they stopped at a fork in the hall. “Or worse, put on academic probation or suspension for harassing a guest lecturer.”  
  
Caleb only gave his friend, co-host, roommate and occasional bed partner a smarmy grin before they parted ways.

~~~

An hour later, Caleb and Will did, in fact, meet up and they followed the gaggle of obsessed Jayden Mattis fans. It seemed everyone was eager to meet him even if they personally weren’t apart of the college of arts. Though of course, the fine arts majors seemed to be the ones really in a frenzy. There was interest in Will’s film courses, plenty of them had artistic leanings, though plenty others had more of an interest in making in big out west after graduation. Meanwhile, Caleb’s journalism peers were less interested in the art aspect and more interested in potentially getting an interview for a project from the visitor.  
  
“Jesus Christ,” Will murmured when they managed to track down where Jayden allegedly had last been spotted. “Guy can’t even piss in peace, can he?”  
  
“Huh,” Caleb eyed the crowd of students waiting to pounce on Jayden who they suspected was in the men’s room. “We should introduce ourselves,” he grabbed Will’s hand without a response and marched over to the door, nudging their way to the door before yanking it open and all but shoving Will inside before following after him. “Fortune favors the bold,” he said, ignoring the irate faces of those he’d all but shoved aside.  
  
“No, Caleb, you _fucking asshole_, now we’re part of the problem!” Will insisted as he found himself stumbling forward into the restroom with a mortified expression on his face.

* * *

Trapped inside of a public restroom for the better part of an hour, Jayden had simply been leaning against the counter and desperately tapping away at his mobile. For the longest time, he had been trying to just get some sort of service in there so that he could try and get someone to rescue him. Either that or at least get them to hire a security detail for him. He had thought that at a university of all places the people and students would be level-headed, but it turned out instead that the lot of them were absolutely insane.  
  
When the door slowly opened, again, he immediately bolted upright with both eyes darting immediately over toward it. "A minute! I said I will be out in a minute!” He yelled out. That typically had been enough to scare anyone else away and give him his privacy, however, this time around that little trick of his didn’t work. ‘Fuck!’ He hissed beneath clenched teeth when two others had quickly stumbled inside, now he would be trapped in the restroom with two members of this group of maniacs. And now that they had gotten successfully inside, the others would likely become just as bold and start filtering in as well. Under any other circumstances, he would have enjoyed the idea of men slowly filtering into his room, but this was utter madness.  
  
When he saw who it was that had entered into the restroom however, he utterly froze. For the briefest couple of seconds, he was no better than a deer in the headlights, his mouth ajar and his phone slowly slipping out of his grip. Luckily however he managed to regain his senses before it crash-landed onto the floor.  
  
“Bad enough to have a legion of stalkers. Guess I don’t even have my right to privacy anymore either.” He muttered lowly to himself, trying to play off his initial expression as shock over the two of them actually daring to enter the room.  
  
With a sigh, he pocketed his phone inside of his suit coat then glanced over at the two with a brow raised. “Fans?” He asked. “Sorry I’m usually a bit more welcoming than this, but considering the circumstances…” He forced himself to tear his gaze away from the two and over toward the door. “...this is supposed to be a moment that you all are to remember for the rest of your lives, and yet here I am hiding away. Fucking pathetic, isn’t it?” He brought his gaze back to the two of them and smirked. “Well. You already know who I am I’m sure. The real mystery of the hour, however, is the names of the two handsome gentlemen who have penetrated my inner sanctum.”

* * *

_"A minute! I said I will be out in a minute!”_

With their target yelling, Will froze completely, wondering how this idea could easily go pear-shaped and end with them all but expelled a semester and a half away from graduation. He didn’t know a thing about Jayden Mattis other than he was a famous artist who happened to reside near enough to their college campus to become a guest lecturer. For all he knew, Mattis could have been a total diva or just another stuck up snob. Idly, Will wondered if the artist before them had been present when Sir William’s head came off.  
  
Caleb, meanwhile, simply raised a brow at the sound of a man who clearly wanted to be left alone, though his beaming smile hardly faltered. He knew less than Will about the artist they had tracked down and had already written him off as just another member of the elite with their noses stuck in the air. Similar to Will, he too wondered just how close to the stage Jayden had been during the latest murder. Dissimilar to Will, Caleb’s smile only widened.  
  
By the time Jayden caught sight of them, Will had a matching deer in the headlights look, though he silently wished the ground would swallow him up. Caleb, as usual, remained utterly undaunted by the reaction and remained motionless, waiting for the artist to get his bearings before attempting an introduction. That being said, Caleb realized how flimsy his plan was, but they had to at least give it an attempt.

_“Bad enough to have a legion of stalkers. Guess I don’t even have my right to privacy anymore either”_

At Jayden’s next words, just barely audible, Will went crimson and if not for Caleb’s hand pressed firmly in the middle of his back, would have turned on his heel and left. As it was, he remained rooted in the spot until Caleb nudged him forward a bit. Caleb’s attention was fixed on Jayden and he looked more than thrilled to have cornered the man, even if it sounded as if Jayden himself wanted to be left alone.

_“Fans?” ... “Sorry I’m usually a bit more welcoming than this, but considering the circumstances…” ... “The real mystery of the hour, however, is the names of the two handsome gentlemen who have penetrated my inner sanctum”_

“I’m Caleb Callahan,” the blond spoke first, boldly and without even hesitating, though he didn’t go beyond a first and last name in his introduction. He’d promised himself a long time ago that he wasn’t going to stand on his parent’s names or metaphorical shoulders, but his own two feet.  
  
“And this,” he said, indicating Will with yet another nudge, “is William Hawking, easily your biggest fan. He really can’t shut up about you,” he continued, much to Will’s growing horror. “He’s been _dying_ to meet you since we heard you’d be around campus.”  
  
At some point in the bathroom, Caleb had formed the idea that maybe while he continued to work on the Midnight Killer aka the anonymous donor, Will could work the Mattis angle. It made perfect sense in his mind, Will couldn’t handle talking to someone creepy and Caleb clearly had no qualms flirting with a known murderer. Meanwhile, Caleb figured if he was doing that, then Will could get cozy with someone who might know the killer.  
  
“Uh, just _‘Will’_ is fine,” the brunette said quietly, his face still warm and he still looked nervous due to the position Caleb had thrown him headfirst into. “Sorry, nerves,” he continued, glancing down at the tiled floor, hoping he just seemed nervous to meet someone he allegedly idolized. “It really is nice meeting you, even if this is...not how I pictured it.”  
  
“So...uh,” Caleb piped up, “are we going to stand around in here and wait for the hordes to bust in...? Three guys hanging around in a restroom, people will start to talk.”

* * *

It took everything in his power for Jayden not to look at the duo too oddly. His greatest fan? He didn’t recall either of them ever talking about him or his daytime occupation at length during either their duo or individual streams. In fact, the only time they spoke about modern artists were during their so-called ‘murder’ analysis.  
  
“Biggest fan, hm?” He chimed back with a low chuckle, though he wondered what their true aim was here. Did they know something more about the cases than they had been revealing during their streams? He pondered over whether this was an attempt to suck up and get him to reveal key details that would get him incriminated by the police. Maybe they instead wanted to use him as an ‘in’ into the art community, that way they could continue their investigation directly. Or perhaps, they just wanted to use him for his fame and money. Maybe try and get a shoutout and then enjoy a boost in popularity to their channels. So many interesting possibilities here. He decided for his own amusement it’d be best to humor this little plan of theirs.  
  
“Well then, let me just say.” He spoke as he pushed away from the counter and slowly made his way over to Will. After closing the distance, he gently cupped his chin and brought his gaze upward to meet his own. “That it truly is an honor, Will.” His gaze lingered on the hazel-green eyes, far longer than he had originally intended. He had seen them so many times in the videos, and the livestreams, however seeing them in person was another experience entirely. So beautiful… and so tragic in a way. Little did they know that he was their biggest fan, and he couldn’t even tell them.  
  
After a moment that lasted several seconds longer than he had expected, Jayden tore his gaze away and turned back to Caleb. “And you as well, Caleb. If I were to guess, barging in here was your doing.” He said, flashing a charming smile at first and then offered his hand. Similar with Will, his gaze, as well as the handshake, lingered on him a few seconds longer than intended.  
  
After introductions had been completed, Caleb had been quick to speak up and point out the current predicament all three of them were now in. “Then let them talk. Famous artist seduces two college students, what a benign headline Two male college students though.” Jayden glanced up and stroked his chin thoughtfully for a brief moment. “Still shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. We’d need something more controversial than just this to make headlines.” He said with a shrug.  
  
From there he glanced back at the door and let out a heavy groan. “But I will say that it would be better to get to know each other in a less…” He glanced around. “...seedier... location. And the sooner I face this madness the better.” Jayden reached for the door again and let out a heavy breath Before actually opening it, however, he instead backed away then reached into his suit and pulled out a wallet. He briefly flipped through the sides then pulled out a business card and handed it to Will. “Call me later when this all dies down a bit. We can enjoy a chat over a coffee, you can tell me about your studies here. Both of you are invited actually, if you find yourself interest” He said, glancing from one to the other. “Let’s just say that I’m open-minded and not one to pick favorites.”

* * *

_“Biggest fan, hm?” _

Will felt like a worm speared onto a hook and cast into the ocean when Jayden responded to the claim that Will was any sort of fan of his. If he wasn't under the scrutinizing gaze of the artist he might have gone ahead and smacked Caleb for pulling this stunt. On Caleb's end, he didn't see any reason this plan might backfire_ too_ badly here and now. As far as he knew, Jayden Mattis had no reason to know of either of them or their tastes. Sure, all of Will's social media only ever pointed to him being a fan of horror and certain grunge and indie bands or artists. The entire macabre and spooky thing was Will's aesthetic, which didn't fit so well with what they knew of Jayden's art. Mind racing, it occurred to Will that all it would take would be one google search of either of their names to reveal his lack of fanboying over Jayden and a clear interest in the Midnight Killer.

_“Well then, let me just say” ... “That it truly is an honor, Will” _

It took all of Will's willpower to stay where he was when Jayden pushed off from the counter and approached him. He didn't feel threatened, but he was thrown off guard and his nerves were frazzled from the entire situation. If he'd known Caleb was going to throw him to the wolves then he likely would have refused to come in and approach Jayden at all. Before he could plot to get Caleb back for this, he felt a warm hand cupping his chin and tilting his head up to meet Jayden's gaze. He was at a loss for words.  
  
The feeling of Jayden's hand cupping his chin was far from bad, actually, it was almost_ nice_. If nothing else, Jayden Mattis was at least rich, famous, and most importantly, considering his proximity,_ handsome._ It wasn't a stretch to guess any number of people would have been thrilled to be in Will's position right now. Still, the gaze lasted longer than Will thought appropriate and he forced himself not to squirm as his eyes were stared into so deeply. He couldn't help but think back to the messages the Midnight Killer had sent them the other night and it made him shiver.

_“And you as well, Caleb. If I were to guess, barging in here was your doing” _

Breathing a sigh of relief, Will was glad Jayden's attention shifted over to Caleb. The blond, meanwhile, thought nothing of the over how long Jayden looked at him and held his hand when they shook. Sure, it was a bit strange, but Caleb had met enough eccentric friends of his parents to know sometimes the rich and famous could be downright _weird._  
  
"Yep, that was me," Caleb affirmed, clearly the bolder of the two in situations like these.

_“Then let them talk. Famous artist seduces two college students, what a benign headline Two male college students though” ... “Still shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. We’d need something more controversial than just this to make headlines” _

"'_Pics or it didn't happen,_'" Will quipped, his earlier shyness dissipating enough to finally speak.  
  
"A college bathroom is the last place I'd be seduced," Caleb added.  
  
"It's certainly a little too _dry_ in here," the brunette continued for both of them.  
  
"Right, neither of us is being seduced without being bought a drink first," the blond said with a finalizing nod.  
  
For the briefest of moments, it was like the two were going back and forth and joking during one of their streams. Will seemed to relax more into the comments and rebuttals the pair exchanged. To an extent, Caleb knew what he was doing would be one of the few things to help Will feel at ease with the situation.

_“But I will say that it would be better to get to know each other in a less…” ... “...seedier... location. And the sooner I face this madness the better” _

With Jayden going for the door, Caleb feared the man was simply going to up and walk out of their lives forever moments after having met them. Will, meanwhile, was perfectly content with the possibility of not having to maintain whatever charade Caleb had been going for with all but throwing him at Jayden. What surprises both of them is when Jayden pauses, produces a business card, and hands it off to Will.

_“Call me later when this all dies down a bit. We can enjoy a chat over a coffee, you can tell me about your studies here. Both of you are invited actually, if you find yourself interest” ...“Let’s just say that I’m open-minded and not one to pick favorites”_

Standing there dumbstruck, Will waited for Jayden to leave before attempting to speak again. He blinked, then shook his head as if to clear his thoughts, then looked towards Caleb with a small frown. If he'd been there alone and if the card wasn't still clutched in one hand, he would have suspected the whole thing was a vivid hallucination.  
  
"...Did we just get seduced by Jayden Mattis?" Will asked, still holding the business card and turning over in his hands while examining the information printed onto it.  
  
Caleb stared at the door where Jayden had disappeared to deal with the circus outside, then finally he spoke, "I think we both got asked on a coffee date by Jayden Mattis, yeah."

~~~

Hours later, after both Will and Caleb were done with all of their classes for the day, they met up in the parking lot. Will unlocked his well-worn 80s era Jeep renegade and the two of them hopped inside while Will produced the business card from the depths of his pockets. They didn't make a move to go home, wanting to follow up with Jayden before leaving campus. Will still wasn't sure of this plan and suspected it was only a matter of time before the artist realized Caleb's lie and called them out on the deception. Still, after starting the engine and giving it a moment to warm up, Will grabbed his phone and called the mobile number printed on the card, waiting for a response on the other end.

* * *

Jayden continued suffering through the rest of his tour with a fake smile and a false pep to his step. He thought dealing with the rich and famous was exhausting but this was on an entirely different level. The students and faculty all seemed like they needed to put him on some sort of golden pedestal, and trying to point that out or attempting to downplay things just triggered the lot of them to praise how humble and supposedly down-to-earth he was. It was exhausting as hell, and by the time the afternoon rolled around he found himself craving his circle of superficial friends and acquaintances. The lot of them were irritating, but at least they treated him normally.  
  
-  
  
“Alice, why the hell didn’t you tell me that woman was obsessive. She had nearly the entire campus following me around like a collective shadow.” Jaden grumbled into his phone, finally able to relax as an Uber driver carried him back uptown. Despite the darkening skies and dreaded Midnight Killer lurking over all of their heads, the crowds followed him right up to the parking lot where he hurriedly got inside of the vehicle and ordered the man to drive. The driver initially looked confused, even did a double and triple-take to see who it was he was actually driving, but ultimately just focused back on the road and took off. Jayden wasn’t sure if the man knew to be quiet or just wasn’t familiar with the art scene, either way, he made a mental note to give him a sizable tip for having the foresight to remain quiet after such a ridiculous day.  
  
_‘I did try to tell you! But you never want to hear any of my juicer details! Maybe next time you will allow me to finish my stories properly._’ Came the voice on the other end.  
  
“How the hell does you going into detail about her tongue-fucking relate in any way to her being obsessive?”  
  
_‘Well… there’s the bit where she went at it literally for hours… or this thing she has where she cries out the names of Renaissance artists… Modern ones too…’_  
  
“Oh god…”  
  
_‘Oh, she never called out your name though.'_ Followed by a light chuckle on the other end. _‘Do you know how awkward that would be? It’s like a casual hookup crying out one of my exes….’_  
  
“That was only one time, Alice.”  
  
_‘Four times, actually. You really ought to keep better track of these things.’_  
  
“I only remember the one time, And since that one time is the only one that I remember, that’s going to be the only one that actually cou-” He paused mid-sentence when his phone buzzed again, and an unknown number popped into view. “Hold on, I’ll call you back. One time only, Alice.” He said before switching to the other line.  
  
“Jayden Mattis.” He said in a typical, business-like tone. The moment he heard Will’s voice on the other end however, he moved the phone away and cursed under his breath. How shitty could a day be that he completely forgot he had dinner-plans with his favorite duo. Or was it coffee-plans? Hell, he didn’t even remember, but now it was going to be dinner.  
  
“Right! Right… uh… let me text you the address… see you in thirty.” He said hastily, mentally rearranging his schedule as he did, then abruptly hung up. He wasn’t even sure where they were or if they’d even arrive in thirty minutes, but that was the least of his worries at the moment.  
  
That done, he punched in the location of a ritzy-looking bistro downtown, then quickly rerouted his ride to take him there. Then there was there matter of actually calling the bistro and making sudden reservations. There was a lengthy, almost heated, back-and-forth before him and the hostess who didn’t even believe him when he threw out his name. The exchange ultimately ended with him able to get the manager on the line to verify his identity, apologizing profusely all the while. Lastly, he called Alice back.  
  
“Something came up Alice, forgot I had other plans”  
  
_‘Other plans? You said yesterday you were free this… Oh Jayden, you little whore!’_  
  
“Nothing like that, it’s coffee with students.”  
  
_‘Coffee at eight in the evening? Let me guess, this ‘coffee’ will be at your place as well?’_  
  
“Well… it’s more like dinner… at the DeCarlton…”  
  
_‘The DeCarlton?! Oh! When you put yourself out there you’re playing for keeps. Nevermind that it's with a student… wait wait wait... I heard you say students! To think that I actually BELIEVED that bullshit speech of yours about lightening the mood inside of the art community, I knew EXACTLY what you were doing from the very start!’_  
  
“Oh that speech was honest. But uh, let’s just say that I’ve made some… uh… secondary priorities after seeing the options available.”  
  
_'Mhm. Already such great ‘professor’... Well, don’t mind me. Never been one to get in the way of a man and his satisfaction. You will be paying for brunch next week by the way. Oh! And it was four times.'_  
  
-  
  
The DeCarlton itself was hidden away at the top floor of one of the taller office buildings, smack-dab in the middle of downtown. Closed during normal business hours, it opened its doors to great fanfare the moment the sun began to set. A red carpet was rolled out from the lobby out into the streets, it’s entrance closely watched and guarded by several individuals that looked more akin to secret service than simple bouncers. During its heyday, crowds and paparazzi all gathered at that grand carpet to get a first-person view at the rich and famous enjoying themselves, the celebrated figured taking to the stage happily to the adoration of their fans and blinding flashes of cameras and phones. However, with the Midnight Killer lurking about those times were but a relic of the past. The entrance nowadays was a far quieter, far more secure affair that only those who could afford it were able to enjoy.  
  
After a bit of financial encouragement to get his driver to run a couple of red lights, and disobey a couple of speed limits, Jayden arrived at the carpet at thirty minutes exactly. Every other time he had come he simply invited himself inside and enjoyed a brief moment at the bar, however knowing that a pair of college students wouldn’t be able to get anywhere near the lobby he opted this time to wait outside.

* * *

_“Jayden Mattis” _

“Oh hey, it’s Will, from earlier,” Will responded when he heard Jayden’s voice on the other end. For a good moment, he wondered if the artist had forgotten about them already and if he should be offended or relieved. If Jayden had forgotten, then he had less potentially embarrassing or uncomfortable encounters to stumble through. However, a moment later, it seemed as if Jayden hadn’t forgotten.

_“Right! Right… uh… let me text you the address… see you in thirty” _

“Uh...hmm,” pulling his phone away from his ear after Jayden hung up, Will silently eyed the text message. “I don’t think we’ll get there in thirty,” he said flatly to no one other than Caleb and himself.  
  
Reading off the address to Caleb, who typed it into his maps app, Will began to pull them out of their parking space and out of the student parking lot. Once Caleb had the location inputted and the route planned, he laughed, realizing where they were going.  
  
“This Mattis guy must really want us to put out,” he said, much to Will’s confusion, “The DeCarlton, it’s one of those places that might call the police if the pair of college students come strolling on up to the entrance.”  
  
At a stoplight, Caleb had pulled up a few images of the bistro in question and showed Will, who groaned. As far as he was concerned, the night couldn’t have gotten worse for him. Sure, anyone else would have been jumping for joy at a chance to get in somewhere so exclusive, but Will wasn’t anyone else. Right now, a sharp contrast to how blasé Caleb was acting, Will was still a mess of nervous energy. He couldn’t be sure he could handle the scrutiny of being in such a place or of potentially reliving at least one traumatic event in his own mind if things went beyond just dinner.  
  
“It’ll be fine, you know that, right?” Caleb asked forty minutes later as they pulled up to a metered curb a block away from the DeCarlton. “If the people in there don’t like us, fuck them. If the waitstaff are rude too? Fuck them. If Jayden Mattis himself doesn’t like us, then at least we got a free dinner out of him.”  
  
“You know that’s not all I’m worried about,” Will intoned softly.  
  
Caleb frowned for a long moment, knowing exactly what Will was talking about, and somewhat regretting the position he put his friend into back when they were in the bathroom. For a moment, they sat there in silence as the time since the call ended met the forty-five-minute mark.  
  
“We don’t have to sleep with him,” Caleb said simply as they finally got out of the archaic jeep and started walking. “Even if we do though, you know I won’t let anyone hurt you again.”  
  
“I know,” Will replied as they approached their destination.

~~~

“We’re so underdressed for this,” Will said as they spotted Jayden, though they were still out of earshot.  
  
Giving Will a once over, from the neat formfitting jeans to the buttoned-up top and dark jacket and a purple scarf wrapped around his neck, Caleb rolled his eyes before saying, “you look fine.”  
  
“At least I shoot for looking like an adult at school,” Will said with a sigh.  
  
“Yeah, I feel like your usual look of ripped jeans and plaid wouldn’t go over well here,” Caleb laughed and managed to get a smile out of Will again as they approached Jayden.

* * *

When the pair had arrived, Jayden was off to the side leaning against the building. One hand was busy tapping away at his phone while the other held e-cig to his lips, he didn’t even notice the two were two there until he managed to catch a sudden shift of activity out of his peripheral vision.  
  
The bouncers were extremely quick to stop the two from getting any closer to the man. All of them had the list of the night’s reservations memorized, including Jayden’s sudden one, and not one person on that list fit a pair of local college students wandering in without any respect for the establishment’s dress code. And while they were aware that the famed artist was expecting two guests, it was reasonable to believe that these two definitely weren’t the ones was currently waiting on.  
  
“Carry on.” One of the bouncers said as he stood in front of the two, powerful arms crossed firmly across his broad chest. “There is nothing for the two of you here. You want something to eat head over to that burger shop two blocks down.”  
  
By that time, Jayden walked over and gave the taller man a gentle couple of pats on the back. “Don’t worry they’re with me.” He said and gestured for the two of them to follow him into the building.  
  
Jayden remained silent as they walked through the large lobby, his head still buried into his phone. Apart from the three of them and a lone attendant who stood at the far end right next to the elevators, the expansive room was completely empty and completely silent, the one noise being the eerie sounds of their own footsteps as they made their way across. By the time they were about halfway, he attendant offered the trio a polite bow, then turned and pressed the button the summon a lift to the floor. And by the time they had reached the other side of the lobby, it was already there and opened with the attendant just smiling and gesturing with his hand to enter.  
  
After they had entered, the doors automatically closed and slowly ascended without any input from any of then. Around that time, Jayden let out a heavy sigh then finally locked his phone shut and placed it inside his suit pocket. “Sorry about that.” He said. “Usually they know who I’m expecting. Not a good idea to put in reservations at the last minute.” He confessed. “Or to make reservations in a panic either. This isn’t exactly the coffee spot that I was envisioning. Forgot that I had even made the suggestion that I did by the time I had left campus, and this just happened to be the first spot that came to mind when I was trying to get everything together last minute.” He continued, glancing over at the two. “You two drink by the way?”

* * *

_“Don’t worry they’re with me”_

By the time Jayden had gotten to them, Caleb had been about to open his mouth and make the situation exponentially worse while Will looked just about done with this entire endeavor. Thankfully, Jayden showed up when he did and Caleb snapped his mouth shut while Will breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing either of them needed was getting kicked out of a place before they so much as entered.  
  
As Will and Caleb went with Jayden across the lobby, they exchanged glances with one another. They weren’t entirely sure what to make of a man they had both only just met earlier that day. For all they knew, this was perfectly normal for him. Then again, both of them knew he was likely very busy on a regular day and couldn’t fault him for being on his phone. Plus, their current arrangement had been somewhat of a last-minute thing for everyone involved, though they hadn’t expected _this._  
  
Aside from Jayden himself, neither of them knew what to make of the seemingly empty establishment. The lobby in the photos of the place always looked as if it were teeming with life. Right now though, it looked like an empty husk. Silently, as they made their way into the lift, they had to wonder how this place was still in business when the evening rush was not much of a rush. Idly, both of them had to wonder how local businesses might be suffering due to all the homicides. The Midnight Killer’s prolific record surely had to have given the city a boost on a ‘most dangerous places to live’ list on some clickbait sight.

_"You two drink by the way?”_

“No,” Caleb started, just as Will opened his mouth to say yes.  
  
“Yes,” Will went ahead, side-eyeing Caleb, who only shrugged.  
  
“...Yes it is then,” the blond said, hoping Will knew what he was doing.  
  
“But it is a school night,” Will amended, giving Caleb a look. “So normally ‘yes’ just probably not tonight.”  
  
“If only it were Friday night already,” Caleb lamented, giving Will a grin.  
  
“Even Friday nights have been dull since...” Will trailed off, knowing full well why parties and the entire nightlife scene had been dead lately. “Well, for the last year.”  
  
“Right, drinking socially makes you fun...” Caleb trailed off, him and Will sharing an expression.  
  
“But drinking alone makes you an alcoholic,” Will finished.  
  
“You really went all out with this,” the blond stated, his focus solely on Jayden as they ascended. “Not many people can get a last-minute reservation here.”  
  
“It was a little unexpected,” the brunette added once they reached the top. “I’d been expecting a Starbucks or one of those hipster coffee houses.”

* * *

“So guess makes me the alcoholic of the evening then,” Jayden said. He enjoyed a good drink, but usually only in decent company. Alone he typically only dealt with beer, maybe wine sometimes. For a day like that however, he was perfectly fine with ordering something stronger, even if it meant that he’d be enjoying it by himself.  
  
“Unintentionally.” He then said after Caleb had commented that he had went all out on things. “As I said, I had forgotten. Getting food was on my mind and this place just happened to be the first to pop into my head.” He paused. “To be honest though, I don’t know what the hell I was thinking to suggest coffee at this hour. Maybe I had expected a sooner calI? Don’t know.” He shrugged, then chuckled to himself. “Just consider yourselves lucky and don’t question it too much. You lucked up and got a far grander evening than the coffee and macaroons I had planned.”  
  
-  
  
When the doors finally opened they were welcome to a dimly-lit large-scale ballroom that seemingly took up the entire floor. Silken tables and polished booths lined the floors and walls, all filled with diners in evening gowns and overpriced suits who were busy quietly conversing amongst themselves. On the far end was a live band, a cellist was leisurely strumming along to the voice of a crooner who at the moment seemed lost in his own sound.  
  
They were immediately greeted by a pair of waitresses, both wearing tight-fitted dresses that rode well above the knees. In between and far shorter than them both was a lone gentleman, also in an overpriced suit, just casually puffing away a cigar.  
  
“Mr. Mattis! Let me just say you look absolutely stunning…” He immediately started, however, Jayden just stepped forward and glanced around to see where his booth was. “Cut the song and dance, Larry, I haven’t eaten since two.”  
  
“Well Jayden, you caused such an uproar that the least you can do is allow me to pretend that I’m not absolutely furious. I told you once before we are not some takeout spot you can just pop into.” He said, his previously cheerful visage immediately souring. It only worsened when he saw the two students behind him. At the sight of them, the man’s right eye immediately started twitching. “There is a dress code.” He said through clenched teeth.  
  
“Yeah yeah.” Jaden said, locating an empty booth off in the distance. Waving his hand dismissively he immediately made his way over, expecting the two to follow behind. “Look, just bill me whatever you need to for the evening Larry. Good? Good.” He then said, cutting the conversation abruptly and leaving the man behind him steaming, and muttering something about proper decorum and cursing something about new money.  
  
Arriving at his destination, Jayden took a seat at one end, allowing the two to sit together if they wanted. Without even waiting for the hostesses he picked up the drink menu and started scanning the day’s offerings. The text was fully in French, both it and the actual menu. The idea was the force people to wait for the waiters or hostesses to come by and have them do usual speel about what the chef felt like making that evening. Jayden personally didn’t understand French but he had been there enough times to know which fancy-sounding words led to which fancily-made drinks. There also weren’t any prices either, but that wasn’t expected to be a problem for the people who were able to make a reservation there.  
  
"Oh right, I probably ought to explain this place.” He said, glancing over to the two. “There’s this thing with the chef where he only makes what he feels like making. If you can’t read the menu, the French girls we saw are going to come around and explain the evening’s menu. You tip 'em nicely enough and they’ll stick around and pretend that they’re interested.” He said. “‘Pretend’ is the keyword here, pretty sure they’re lesbians.”

* * *

_“Just consider yourselves lucky and don’t question it too much. You lucked up and got a far grander evening than the coffee and macaroons I had planned”_

“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth and all that?” Will murmured, not sure if they were lucky or profoundly unlucky with this development. Once more, he reminded himself anyone else would have killed to be in their position, even if he felt immensely uncomfortable. Even worse, as far as he knew, Jayden just thought he was talking a fan and a fan’s friend out. He still hadn’t figured out what Jayden was aiming for here, was this just a friendly gesture, a date, or was he hoping for something much more risqué by the end of the night? Will wasn’t even sure if it was too late to back out now.

~~~

Subconsciously, Will looked around for exits, emergency or otherwise. He took note of where the restrooms were in the event that he had yet another nervous reaction. Memories of the previous night and older memories that had brought back were still fresh in his mind. Will certainly didn’t need to add ‘vomiting in a ritzy restaurant while out with Jayden Mattis’ to his list of embarrassing moments. Meanwhile, Caleb looked around with interest, never having been here, though he occasionally glanced over to see how Will was doing.

_“Look, just bill me whatever you need to for the evening Larry. Good? Good.”_

Immediately, Caleb’s eyebrows shot up and his lips curled into a lopsided and skeptical grin at the assertion that there was a dress code. He eyed the two women wearing skirts much tighter and higher than any dress code he was familiar with allowed. On Will’s end, he flushed a deeper shade of red, knowing full well they were substantially underdressed for all of this. Silently, he hoped if they had a repeat performance that they’d have the option of a more low key venue. Thankfully, Jayden seemed to have the situation handled and both of them just followed along as he lead them to an empty booth.  
  
Will slid into the booth with Caleb close behind him. While Caleb watched Jayden for a moment, Will picked up one of the menus and scanned it over. He didn’t see any prices, but he could read everything well enough. The blond leaned over and peered over his friend’s shoulder, eyeing the contents of the menu he couldn’t read.

_“If you can’t read the menu, the French girls we saw are going to come around and explain the evening’s menu.”_

“It’s times like these I regret taking Spanish,” Caleb commented as Will seemed to read things over.  
  
“You grew up in LA,” Will offered as a form of reassurance.  
  
“My mother is French,” was the immediate rebuttal from Caleb.  
  
“...Would you like me to read the menu to you?” Will offered, earning a nod from Caleb.  
  
With a long-suffering sigh, that maybe exaggerated the suffering part, Will went ahead and gave a basic rundown of what was on the menu, first in French, then in English, pausing briefly between translations. He’d taken four years in high school and had tested out of needing to take it via CLEP in college and had TA-ed in a class or two for a while. So far it had worked out well enough for him, though he often wondered what was the point in learning something he only used on occasions like this.

_“‘Pretend’ is the keyword here, pretty sure they’re lesbians”_

“I’ve never been remotely interested in women,” Will said, as he closed the menu, having essentially decided for Caleb and himself what they’d be getting.  
  
“I’m pretty sure my type isn’t lesbians,” Caleb chimed in, unhelpfully.  
  
“That’s homophobic,” the brunette cut in, shaking his head.

“I’m too bi to be homophobic,” the blond said dismissively.

“Anyway...” Will sat back and wondered if he really didn’t want to at least glance at the drink menu.

* * *

Jayden looked up and raised a brow when Will had went through the menu himself and translated each of the evening’s items, though a moment afterward he just smiled and brought his attention back to the drink menu. When they touched upon his comment about the hostesses however he couldn’t help but chuckle.  
  
“Hm… maybe ought to tip them after all if this is to be the LGBT corner...” Jayden said idly after both pretty much confirmed that they were into guys. He had a hunch just from watching them and just how well they worked and bounced off of one another, well that and the fact that they didn’t seem entirely repulsed by his flirty(ish) comments during their meetup in the bathroom. But good to have an actual confirmation of things now. “Speaking of which, you two… lovers or something? You get along way too well for it to be a coincidence.” He then asked, wondering for a moment if that was too awkward a question. Then again he had invited two students he just met to one of the nicest places in town, after dark, for something that could have easily been mistaken as a date. There wasn’t anything ‘normal’ about this entire situation, he wasn’t even sure himself what the hell this even was. Definitely not light discussion over coffee.  
  
Eventually, just as he had said, the hostesses had come over. One poured each of them a glance of sparkling mineral water, while the other asked if they needed any assistance with the menu. Jayden glanced over at the two, wondering if they needed more time to decide, then pushed the drink menu forward and pointed to two different mixed cocktails. One for now and the second for later. “Oh, and a shot of something. Tequilla… yeah let’s go that route, give me something that really burns going down.” He said and then shifted the menu to the center of the table, noticing that Will had been eyeing it.  
  
After orders had been placed, he leaned back and wondered how they should continue the evening. Jayden thought back to the bathroom, how Will was apparently he ‘biggest fan’. He wondered how well he could use that for entertainment. “Well then, ask away.” He said seemingly out of the blue, glancing at Will. “You said something about always wanting to meet me earlier, right? You must be dying to ask something, go ahead. I’m an open book.” He said, offering a gentle smile. “Or, if you like, I could ask the questions instead. Actually I just might. Hm. Oh, which of my works would you consider your favorite piece? I can offer you the backstory and inspiration behind it.”

* * *

_“Speaking of which, you two… lovers or something? You get along way too well for it to be coincidence” _

“We’re roommates,” they both replied in unison, “well, friends who eventually moved in together.” Will clarified while looking sidelong at Caleb. The blond nodded his agreement before adding onto it with, “as opposed to roommates who hate each other.”

_“Oh, and a shot of something. Tequilla… yeah let’s go that route, give me something that really burns going down” _

As much as Will desperately wanted a drink he decided here and now was the last place he wanted to get drunk. That and they did have school the following morning and he wasn’t about to go in hungover. With the waitresses' reappearance, he repeated his and Caleb’s orders before setting the menu aside entirely.

_“You must be dying to ask something, go ahead. I’m an open book” _

Biting his lip, Will nearly wanted to point out it was _Caleb_ who had said Will had always wanted to meet Jayden. Obviously the blond hadn’t thought this far ahead, or simply didn’t care about the awkward situation this might land them, or rather Will, in when Jayden expected Will to have actual fan questions. The red in Will’s face had faded a while ago, but it came back full force when placed under pressure to fit the role Caleb had thrust him into back in the bathroom.  
  
“Uh, yes, absolutely _dying_,” Will replied, kicking Caleb sharply under the table while trying to think up something suitably vague, but sufficient.

_“I can offer you the backstory and inspiration behind it”_

“I...uh...” at that moment, Will wanted nothing more than to toss himself out the nearest window, knowing full well the jig was up.  
  
“Oh, it’s the blue one, right?” Caleb piped up, thinking of the brief glimpse of photos he’d seen in the google search o ‘Jayden Mattis’ earlier. “He’s always on about how vibrant the blue one is, personally I don’t care for it, I think it’s boring, but what do _I_ know about art?” There was a pause as Will seemed to almost relax again, content to let Caleb take the lead for them. “I am hoping to become a _journalist, _after all, speaking of, I was hoping to ask _you_ a few questions. If you don’t mind, that is.”

* * *

No sooner had he offered the floor to Will, the brunette completely froze up again. It took everything in his power to maintain his current, patient gaze rather than smirking and chuckling over how completely lost he looked now. Even if he wasn’t aware that they were up to something, the entire situation was just odd. Will had been relaxed and chatting just a moment before, even had casually translated the french menu for Caleb, but now all of a sudden he was frozen and nervous again.  
  
Instead Caleb had come to the rescue, and commented on how vibrant ‘the blue one’ happened to be. “Hm.” He said, pretending to look thoughtful when he was really more irritated. That stung almost as badly as when they called his other art piece ‘murders’, actually it stung just as badly. At least the vapid, superficial socialites he dealt with had the decency to actually know the names of his pieces.  
  
“Ah, yes ‘The Blue One’” He said as he relaxed back into the cushion. Conveniently one of the hostesses returned and set down a shot glass of some brownish liquid that he quickly took and downed in one go. For a brief moment his face contorted, looking as if he was in pain, but after a sharp exhale he was back to paying attention to things again. “Sure I can answer a couple of questions, but first give me a moment to elaborate a bit more on ‘The Blue One’” He answered, then closed his eyes for a brief moment to piece varying stray thoughts together into a workable storyline.  
  
“As you surely know, my specialty is in warmer pallets. Yellows, oranges, reds particularly. As I started gathering more and more attention through the years, my peers would begin to mimic these techniques as well, and essentially started flooding the market with all sorts of warmer pieces. Naturally, I was the one that ended up being blamed for all of this despite the others’ desperate attempts to muscle in on my particular niche. There were all sorts of rumors going around that my fame was getting to my head, that I was forcing people or blackmailing then into following in my footsteps. The copycats, so desperate for the spotlight, were all, of course, more than happy to go along with this. These rumors would eventually start poisoning my critics as well. Soon enough I had more and more people talking about how I’m a one-trick pony, or that I’m just relying on this one gimmick, or people just outright saying that I’m not even all that creative. It’s funny how quickly people will turn on you given the opportunity.” That said, he paused for a bit to give himself a sip of water before continuing. “I’ll admit that it did hurt, just a bit, but it gave me an idea as well. Rather than mope and groan I ought to show off. Give them all the artistic middle-finger. So I made another piece, cooler colors, purples and greens with a focus on blue instead of red. A complete opposite of my usual works. Calling it ‘The Blue One’ was just me showing off. An entire portfolio of warm, vibrant pieces under my belt and there off in the corner was just the blue one. Sitting there nice and petite, forever serving as a reminder to everyone that I can create whatever I pleased and it will still get national acclaim. And do you know what all the critics and rumor spreaders said when it was finally unveiled to the masses?” He asked, apparently a rhetorical question as he continued directly afterward. “They said it was a load of hogwash.” He stated flatly. “That none of this actually happened, and that there is no piece called ‘The Blue One.’”  
  
The hostess next returned with his cocktail, which he took from her hand rather than wait for her to set to the table. He relaxed back and sipped away about half as he focused his attention back on Will. “Well, as someone who was dying to meet me you ought to know what the real ‘The Blue One’ was called, Will, or at least the actual story behind it.” He smiled again. “You were so comfortable just a moment ago, what changed?”

* * *

_“Sure I can answer a couple of questions, but first give me a moment to elaborate a bit more on ‘The Blue One’”_

Will looked skeptical, trying to imagine the specific painting Caleb had been thinking of when he’d arbitrarily picked something to claim Will had been interested in it. Nothing immediately sprung to mind and for a fleeting moment, he wondered if Caleb had simply been projecting and imagined something. Watching Jayden down a shot, Will immediately regretted the idea of staying sober for the night.  
  
The possibility of playing this by ear was all Caleb really had. He’d only ever heard of Jayden himself through overhearing chatter and gossip from others. His actual art had been all but unknown to him since Will had explained a little better after their first class that day. There was a quiet moment in which he had hoped his vague answer might steer them into safer territory.

_“That none of this actually happened, and that there is no piece called ‘The Blue One’”_

Around midway through, Will knew with absolute certainty that their deception had well and truly been uncovered. If not for Caleb seated on the outer end of the booth, he might have already extricated himself from the situation. By the end of it, he knew that Caleb’s attempt at coming to his rescue bought him maybe a minute or two more of time to think of something more substantial to offer Jayden as an answer.  
  
In the beginning, Caleb had been fairly hopeful that his attempt at bullshitting their way through this had worked. However, it quickly became apparent that Jayden wasn’t so easily fooled. He wondered then just when Jayden had found time to look at least Will up and discover he’d never made any indication of being a fan or even remotely interested in any sort of painting. Idly, he wondered then that if, and it was a very hypothetical if, Jayden already knew about their investigation into the Midnight Killer. Even a single video or stream title should have tipped anyone off to that.

_“You were so comfortable just a moment ago, what changed?”_

The feeling of being cornered and trapped grew stronger and Will didn’t know what to do. On the verge of panicking, he felt one of Caleb’s hands enclose around one of his own. The feeling of a warm palm pressed against his own and fingers interweaving with his calmed him. Breathing in, then out, he allowed himself to be anchored as well as air could anchor water, and relaxed marginally.  
  
“Okay, so...” Will started, unable to meet Jayden’s eyes as he spoke, hoping Caleb didn’t dig them into a deeper hole if he interrupted. “Here’s the thing, I’m not really a fan of yours,” he said, feeling somewhat lighter from that admission alone. “I tend to lean more towards things that are somewhat...”  
  
“Morbid, macabre, gruesome, terrifying?” Caleb offered, knowing full well the sort of things that Will preferred.  
  
“Anyway, I’m not actually a fan,” Will repeated, letting that hang in the air for a moment. “But we were hoping to pick your brain over something you might know about already.”  
  
“The Midnight Killer,” Caleb chimed, “I’m sure you figured that much out,” he added, smiling brightly at Jayden. “I mean if you _did_ take the time to look up either of us before dinner. Our series on the Midnight Killer is the first thing that pops up.”  
  
“We can leave, if you want,” Will said quietly, much preferring walking out on their own rather than being thrown out by security.

* * *

Jayden remained silent during the confession, just casually sipping at his cocktail as Will admitted that the pair were only there to get his insights on The Midnight Killer. “And if you did take the time to look me up before dinner, you would have easily gotten the name of a painting or two and allowed this charade of yours to continue. And tell me exactly why would I be doing research on a pair of college students?” He responded, using Caleb’s own phrasing against him. “Not that this plan of yours would have last for much longer. Been in the game far longer than the two of you, I know when people ulterior motives. I deal with them every day” He continued, tipping the glass fully against his lips and easily finished off the rest of his drink. That done, he reached back inside of his jacket and pulled out his phone.  
  
For a brief moment, he opened a browser and tapped away the screen, pulling up one picture after another before setting on one of decent quality. “‘The Blue One’, as you described it, was actually a controversial piece from a couple of years ago called ‘Clare.’” He said, setting the phone down and shifting it over for the two of them to view. The painting itself was extremely ordinary and mundane. A pair of happy parents doting over their toddler - the father watched from the side as the mother held their daughter’s arms in the air as she taught her how to walk and keep balance. The scene itself, likely a fond memory for many, was betrayed by the fact that it had been primarily done in different shades of blue and black. The family looked happy and content, but the coloring confused the brain into thinking it was something that was supposed to be sad and depressing. “It flew under the radar for months. Never got much fanfare, more disgust than anything else. People just didn’t like the dissonance between the scene and its colors… Eventually, it was purchased by an Italian businessman, a ‘gift’ for the ex-wife he loathed the most. It was by sheer chance that someone had caught a glance at the piece right when the staff had picked it up and tilted it at just the right angle.”  
  
He took hold of his phone and flipped the screen, and the image, upside-down. The coloring remained the same but the scene was now completely different. The child was older now, seven by the look of things, her head in her hands and sobbing as she kneeled in-front of two weathered tombstones. The prior, happier, scene was nowhere to be found, but following the traces of the brushstrokes, one could get a glimpse of it all being hidden inside the skyline and the countryside that made the background behind the tombstones.  
  
“Of course by that time the man’s bid was already won. There was a large controversy in the weeks that followed. Arguments for the man to donate the piece and bring it back for auctions, arguments against me for deceiving people.” He shook his head. “Poor thing was greatly undervalued for what it was. It now hangs in one of the man’s private collections I think, he charges people to see it in person.” He paused. “There were several interviews afterward where I called it a mistake. Yet despite all of those, to this day people continue to look at my art in weird ways to find hidden messages that aren’t even there.”  
  
Another pause.  
  
“That is along the lines of what I had hoped to discuss today. I had a hunch about where this was going to go, but I was willing to give the two of you the benefit of the doubt. Two handsome, bright-eyed, young gentlemen, why the hell not.” He shook his head. “Tell me, how many times a week do you think someone asks me about the damned Midnight Killer? How many interviews? I can’t even relax at a fucking dinner without company bringing it up.” He seethed, likely due to the drink in his system, then took in another slow breath. “I came to your school to flip the script around. There’s a madman running around throwing tar over my field of choice, the best that I can do to combat it is to try to uplift the others around me. To steer the conversation back to art and creativity, not murder and mayhem. There’s not much else I can offer on the topic.”

* * *

_"And tell me exactly why would I be doing research on a pair of college students?”_

"You mean you don't screen every person you meet before letting them breathe the same air as you?" Caleb asked snidely while Will elbowed him sharply in the ribs.  
  
"What he means," Will interrupted, knowing if unchecked Caleb would undoubtedly make things worse. "Is that lately everyone seems to be more cautious than usual with recent events."

_"I deal with them every day” _

"You did catch on pretty quick that neither of us knew you were alive until this morning," Caleb bit out, earning a withering glance from Will and a hard, displeased squeeze through their joined hands. "Which is why I took a stab that you might have dug into who you had agreed to take out."  
  
"Our professors have policies against phones in class," Will said, finally. "If I knew there would be a _quiz_ I might have studied beforehand."  
  
Silently, Will made a mental note to put his foot down the next time Caleb wrangled him into some sort of hairbrained and poorly thought out plan. Even worse, he realized perhaps he could have put more effort into assisting with said hairbrained plan enough to make it semi-believable. Kicking himself internally, much more than he'd already kicked Caleb, Will reminded himself this was why he preferred working behind the scenes or in roles that didn't require acting.

_“‘The Blue One’, as you described it, was actually a controversial piece from a couple of years ago called ‘Clare’” _

Will had expected to have been thrown out already, but instead, it seemed that they were going to get an art lesson whether they wanted it or not. Rooted in the spot, Will was silent as Jayden showed them the blue painting that had been glimpsed in their earlier search. Thankfully, for once, Caleb seemed to fall in line and said nothing as Jayden explained the painting to them. So far it sounded as if the one painting that had stood out to Caleb was one of the paintings that the public didn't take an immediate liking to when it was unveiled. Looking at it, Caleb recalled that he did indeed find it boring to the point that all he could recall had been how the color had stuck out.

_"It was by sheer chance that someone had caught a glance at the piece right when the staff had picked it up and tilted it at just the right angle”_

When the image was flipped upside down, Will flinched at the newly discovered scene hidden in the painting. For whatever reason, the jarring sight of a child crying over the tombstones of her parents had gotten a visceral reaction out of him. Caleb continued to look at it impassively, idly wondering if he should try looking at crime scene photos while doing a handstand. Then again, to his knowledge, the Midnight Killer didn't seem the type to _hide_ messages like this.

_"Yet despite all of those, to this day people continue to look at my art in weird ways to find hidden messages that aren’t even there”_

By the time Jayden had finished explaining what became of the painting, Will expected they'd be asked to leave. He couldn't imagine the artist wanting to waste more time than he already had. Meanwhile, Caleb was in the middle of opening his mouth, probably to ask if the painting actually was a mistake or not, only for Will to squeeze his hand again, willing him to be quiet. They weren't here to ask questions about the possible hidden meanings in paintings, but rather to get a pulse check on what the art community thought about the murders.

_“There’s not much else I can offer on the topic”_

"So I take it you're not thrilled about the accusations that the Midnight Killer is a local artist?" Caleb asked finally. "There's not anyone you know of who might have somewhat homicidal tendencies? The police suspected an artist early on, but seem to have abandoned that trail after allegedly 'harassing' a bunch of you, right?"  
  
"I think that's enough, Caleb," Will said suddenly, nudging his co-host over as if trying to get them both out of the booth in one go. "We're sorry to have bothered you and we'll be leaving now."  
  
"You know a lot of people think it's a group effort, the rich and famous protecting the rich and famous," Caleb continued, ignoring Will entirely as he fixated on Jayden. "I think it's one person acting alone and the police are looking at the case completely wrong."  
  
_"Caleb,"_ Will hissed, horrified at what his friend was doing.  
  
"If the police were at all competent these last two incidents would have been the end of it," despite Will's best efforts, Caleb wasn't letting up. "I wonder, do _you _think a pompous, stuck up ass like Sir William getting his head lopped by a guillotine while dressed up as an aristocrat was an accident? Someone had to have put the idea out there and orchestrated things to happen the way they did and it couldn't have been a known enemy. The Midnight Killer had to have been someone close enough to plant the idea, at least."  
  
Will had since given up trying to remove himself and Caleb from the situation. He'd gathered that Caleb was being incredibly discourteous if not outright rude and he also concluded that the blond simply didn't care. Instead of trying to evade whatever reaction Jayden might have to Caleb's conclusions, Will went still, as if willing himself to go unnoticed.

* * *

Jayden listened to Caleb’s speal, not showing much emotion one way or the other toward it. He wasn’t exactly sure what he expected him, Jayden the ‘artist’, to do here. It wasn’t like he had any in-depth knowledge or insights as to who the killer was or how they worked. He was just a celebrated artist and socialite who, amongst many of his peers, was also afraid of the Midnight Killer. Especially now in a post-Sir William society. If one of their richest and most influential fell victim, what hope did any of the rest of them have in securing their own safety?  
  
“Are you done?” Jayden said flatly after the blonde finished, which ended conveniently right when their entrees and his second cocktail had been delivered. He didn’t immediately address the outburst, rather he took the moment afterward to take his drink and quietly sipped against it. “For someone with seemingly no interest in art, you seem pretty passionate about this.” He said after finishing half the drink in one go and setting it back down against the table. “But I don’t understand what you’re expecting out of me here. There is no grand conspiracy, there is no great cover-up going on. Just the tale of a madman running around and running circles around an incompetent police force. A tale of the public being too afraid to go out at night, and a tale of the rich and affluent collectively suffering PTSD after watching a man be beheaded live. I’d say this entire situation was almost cartoonish in a way if I weren’t living in it myself.”

Another pause.  
  
“Well. When I think about it the police isn’t entire the ones to blame here. They deserve the brunt of it, of course, but this is really something of a failure of society as a whole. All these killings and yet not one person has been able to bring forth a single, definitive piece of evidence or witness report to bring all this to a close. And I think the worst of all of this is that no one even knows who it is they should be looking for here. The killer themselves could be right underneath our noses this entire time. It could be an artist, or it could be a high-ranking member of the police force who had been sabotaging this investigation from day one. It could be any of us really. It could be the lesbians over there, it could be one or maybe both of you and I would never even realize. Or maybe I’m the mastermind behind all of this.” He smirked. “That would be an interesting thought, wouldn’t it? That the dinner that you’re having now could never well be your last.” He looked at them with a suspicious, almost knowing look, then burst into a hearty fit of laughter and downed the rest of his drink.  
  
  
“The cocktails hit pretty strong tonight.” He said, still chuckling. “And before you start getting any ideas, my specialization is in painted works, not performance art. Though I am good at _performing_ in other ways.” He said with a snicker then took his glass of water and downed most of it in one go. No more drinks, he noted himself. “Really unfortunate the two of you aren’t actually fans. Think I actually preferred the bullshit to this wannabee Hardy Boys act you’ve got going on right now.”

* * *

Upon realizing they weren’t about to get thrown out or anything, Will forced himself to calm down, though he looked less than pleased with Caleb. Caleb himself seemed to be waiting for some sort of reaction, or at least an indication of what Jayden thought of the entire Midnight Killer matter. Up until today, they didn’t have an actual list of suspects, only that they figured it was an artist or someone who associated with artists. A part of Caleb had half hoped for Jayden to have a lightbulb moment in response to what was essentially a rant. He’d hoped possibly for something to point them in a more specific direction. The flat reaction Jayden had instead made Caleb believe this lead was very likely a bust.

_“Are you done?” _

“I’m never done,” Caleb replied, but made no further comment when the food arrived. If nothing else, he was at least adamant about getting a nice dinner out of this.

_“For someone with seemingly no interest in art, you seem pretty passionate about this” _

“Do _you_ consider the Midnight Killer’s work art?” Will asked, an uncertain look on his face as he watched as Jayden finished his drink.  
  
“If that’s the case, he’s the only artist who’s ever caught my attention,” Caleb quipped offhandedly.

_“I’d say this entire situation was almost cartoonish in a way if I weren’t living in it myself” _

“‘Truth is stranger than fiction,’” Will commented. “You don’t seem too broken up about all that’s happened, or all that afraid of going out at night.”  
  
Caleb, meanwhile, had since started searching his coat pockets before retrieving a pocket-sized notebook and pen. Between bites, he scribbled down a few notes for further inquiry. If he’d had his case files handy he might have been scrawling in the margins or on sticky notes.  
  
“Are we talking actual PTSD,” he said, adding a question mark in his notes. “Or just a collective of leeches squeezing what they can out of one of their own getting his head chopped off?”

_“That the dinner that you’re having now could very well be your last” _

Caleb had opened his mouth, ready to point out that he’d created a profile of the killer, only to realize quickly that he likely wouldn’t be taken seriously. When he’d first gone to the police with his findings months ago, they’d laughed and sent him on his way without so much a glance at his case files. He didn’t see any reason now why someone like Jayden would take him any more seriously than they had.  
  
“Unless the lesbians have thousands of dollars to throw away and like it when you call them ‘daddy’ I doubt it’s them.” Caleb ground out, his unflappable demeanor faltering in his frustration.  
  
With how things were going, Caleb almost wished there was a way to reach the anonymous donor from their streams. Even if it wasn’t the killer behind those messages, he was certain he’d at least get something more substantial out of a conversation with them. Right now though, every frustration and insecurity he had about the case was being pressed on by a tipsy, stuck up painter.

_“Though I am good at performing in other ways” _

“I think we’ll take your word for it,” Will said simply, poking at the plate in front of him, his appetite long gone.

_“Think I actually preferred the bullshit to this wannabee Hardy Boys act you’ve got going on right now.”_

In the middle of writing down another tangent to pursue, Caleb’s pen stopped and left an ugly blotch in the middle of his notes. He held it there a moment, teeth grinding just a bit despite the ever-present smile on his face. He had long since written off Jayden Mattis as a dead end and was at a loss for where to go next until someone else turned up dead.  
  
“Right, I’m _so sorry_ about that,” Caleb started in a not at all sorry tone, pocketing his notes. “You probably can’t get it up if someone’s not gushing over your latest paint splatters.”  
  
Will sighed, giving a few stabs to the food on his plate and forced himself to eat what he could. He doubted they’d ever find themselves here again and the least he could do was savor the moment. With the turn things had taken, he wasn’t sure how he felt about potentially seeing more of Jayden on campus.  
  
“Thankfully, you have the entire art department of Cornell to choose from,” Caleb went on as he started sliding towards the end of the booth. “Come on, Will, we’re leaving.”

* * *

“Jesus, folks can’t even take a joke now?” Jaden said as the two started to leave, thinking that was all due to his Hardy Boys comment. “Perfect evening for the perfect day.” He absentmindedly reached back over for his cocktail glass and brought to his lips, only to realize far too late that it was already empty. He looked down at it almost sadly then sighed and set it back down to his side. “Alright, you win. Let me first just ignore the fact that you lied to my face, and insult my work for no reason whatsoever.” He then set his fork down as well, and took a napkin and quickly wiped his mouth. Next, he returned back to his phone, unlocked it and spent a decent amount of time running a search through the browser.  
  
After finding what he needed, he expanded to large, candid image of Sir William and a tall, lanky woman at his side carrying a stack of folders. “Abigail Walter. She is… well, was, Sir William’s personal secretary. Police have likely been grilling her for questions since the little spectacle. And if they are as incompetent as we all know to be then chances are they’ve been wasting a great deal of time asking all of the wrong questions.” He said before a brief pause.  
  
“Now, given her position next to Sir William as well as the police’s current interests, the chance of a pair of college students getting close enough to her to ask any sort of questions is basically zero. However, it just so happens.” He took his phone then went through his contact list, stopping right at her name then turned the device to show the duo. “That I have her contact information right here.” He said with a smile, waving the phone back and forth like it was some sort of treat. “It’d be easy for me to give her a call and set up a little meeting for you three to chat, however that’s gonna cost ya.” He said, the smile widening as he looked at the pair. Between the drinks and how late in the evening it currently was, it was pretty clear what was on his mind at that point.  
  
After a brief, suspenseful pause to gauge their reactions, he just laughed and shook his head. “Next time I’m on campus, you two treat me to the best coffee spot your school has to offer. And no lies this time.”

* * *

_“Perfect evening for the perfect day” _

Caleb’s lip twitched just a bit and Will just looked beside himself as he moved to follow. In truth, Caleb had heard worse before, but something about the dismissive way the comment was delivered had gotten under his skin. Will, for his part, wasn’t nearly as bothered by Jayden’s words, but had been hoping for a way out of an increasingly awkward predicament. It certainly didn’t help that Caleb had been tossing gas onto the fire since the beginning.

_“Let me first just ignore the fact that you lied to my face, and insult my work for no reason whatsoever” _

Before Caleb could fully vacate the booth, he stopped abruptly at Jayden’s words. Will had been in the process of figuring out just what he was going to do when Jayden spoke. The blond had interest in his eyes now when he curiously turned his attention over his shoulder and back to the artist. Meanwhile, Will had since inched closer to Caleb, though he too had his attention on the man across from them.

_“And if they are as incompetent as we all know to be then chances are they’ve been wasting a great deal of time asking all of the wrong questions”_

The duo immediately recognized Sir William in the photo, though neither were as familiar with the woman beside him. As Jayden explained who she was, the shared interest Caleb and Will had suddenly peaked. In all the previous cases, they’d essentially had no chance of getting all that close to the ones who had known the victims well. Photos and crime scene details were easy to access, but the contact information of private citizens was still restricted. Even if that information was publically available, they knew well enough that they’d get the door slammed in their faces. As far as either of them were concerned, they had a snowball’s chance in Hell of ever getting to speak to Abigail Walter about the circumstances leading to Sir William’s death.

_“That I have her contact information right here”_

Before Caleb could snottily point out their obvious problem, Jayden went ahead and voiced it for them. While Caleb felt like he was being taunted, Will could feel some sort of build up and he doubted Jayden was telling them all of this for nothing. The moment Abigail’s contact details came up, Caleb’s eyebrows shot up and he leaned in minutely. Will, meanwhile, looked apprehensive and not entirely sure he liked where this was going.

_“It’d be easy for me to give her a call and set up a little meeting for you three to chat, however that’s gonna cost ya” _

All at once, Will’s stomach dropped and his heart found its way into his throat. Hazel eyes dropped to where his hand still rested in Caleb’s and he remembered to breathe when he felt a reassuring squeeze through their hands. Caleb was just staring blankly at Jayden, smile long since gone, but there was an openness to hear just what the artist wanted in exchange.

_“Next time I’m on campus, you two treat me to the best coffee spot your school has to offer. And no lies this time” _

“Fine,” Caleb said, moving to leave, but letting go of Will’s hand when the brunette didn’t immediately move with him.  
  
“I’m not familiar with your schedule,” Will said quietly as Caleb slipped away. “It might be best to call or text the next time you’re on campus,” he added thinking for a moment. “My number should still be in your recent call history,” scooting to the edge of the booth, he moved to stand. “Thank you for dinner, even if…” he gestured vaguely to where Caleb had disappeared to, “I guess we’ll see you around.”  
  
With that, Will and Caleb departed.

~~~

“I can’t believe you,” while driving home, Will had been mostly silent, not sure where to start with Caleb.  
  
“We have a lead, don’t we?” Caleb retorted.  
  
“Did you really have to lie from the start?” Will asked, deflated. “And could you have been anymore obnoxious?”  
  
“I absolutely could have been,” sinking into his seat, Caleb just looked indignant.

~~~

Arriving home, Will went directly upstairs to sleep. Caleb floundered for a bit, unsure what to do with Will acting standoffish. The blond supposed that maybe, _possibly_ he had been in the wrong and put Will in an uncomfortable position. Up in their shared bedroom, Caleb eyed Will whose back was turned towards him. Going over to his own bed, Caleb stripped down before climbing in and facing the wall, unable to sleep.  
  
Minutes ticked passed when Caleb heard shuffling and then felt a warmth pressing against his back as Will climbed in behind him. The warm, soft breath at the nape of his neck and against his shoulder felt something close to forgiveness. Just as Caleb had started to drift off, he swore he felt the faintest press of lips against the juncture where his shoulder and neck met.  
  
Will, for his part, was still pretty upset and shaken up over the events of the last few days. Despite how he felt, he suspected Caleb felt some degree of guilt and right then he didn’t need both of them moping. As Caleb drifted off, Will allowed himself to put Jayden Mattis, the Midnight Killer, their livestream series and everything else out of his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	5. Jayden Mattis II

The following week ended up being pretty mundane, or at least as mundane as a city could be with a crazed serial killer still running wild. It became apparent pretty quickly that the murder of Sir William wasn’t gaining any ground, something that came to little surprise of everyone. There was however one press conference mid-week where they announced that they would be charging the stage manager as an accomplice, however the charged against her were extremely flaky seemed very unlikely to actually stick. The only other suspect that came from the investigation was the mysterious masked man that the stage manager spoke of, the one she continued to argue had been the real owner of the forged memo. The memo itself had already been taking in for analysis, but there weren’t any other fingerprints on it other than the manager’s own which made her account of the evening all the more questionable.

Behind the scenes however, though investigators were treating the manager’s accounts with some suspicion they weren’t entirely ignoring it either. If what the manager was saying was true, then it likely went that the Midnight Killer was a male with either enough funds or influence to attend the gala without raising any questions or suspicions from anyone. That was, of course, assuming that the gala was actually the work of the Midnight Killer and not just an assassination against Sir William. Revelations about the killer’s gender or social standing however were never made public. Higher-ups made sure that they’d be kept secret for as long as possible, knowing full well that making them public would once again invite the ire of every CEO, socialite, and politician in the entire city.

For Jayden, the fanfare of his appearance around campus quickly died down as the other departments went on to be preoccupied with their own business. The art department still continued to put him on a pedestal, much to his annoyance, but the lot of them weren’t following him around like a bunch of love-struck groupies. This was likely due to him filing a formal complaint with the school’s president, but he liked to believe that things were finally beginning to calm down.

As a guest lecturer he was only there on official business once a week, usually Fridays, where he held early-morning talks on color theory and art history at the local lecture hall. Unofficially however, with the dean’s approval, he sat-in on random art lectures to better get to know the students and assist wherever and whenever he could. Despite his fame, he quickly gained an extremely good reputation, at least within the Art Department.

Though everything appeared nice and seemed to be going well, Jayden couldn’t help but think back to the impromptu dinner he had with the duo. How nice it could have been, except he was forced to enjoy it using his ‘artist’ persona. How much better it would have been to show them the ‘real’ Jayden, to discuss his ‘real’ art, and to show them just how careful and meticulous he was with his ‘actual’ work. Surely the two would understand if he was given the opportunity to finally explain his work and his ideas. Alas, for now he could not and it pained him so. For now, the only thing he had to look forward to was the live-stream and the Q&A sessions. However, for that to happen he needed to kill again. Though, luckily for the three of them, the time for his next creation was drawing closer and closer.

-

It would be that Friday when Jayden bothered to contact the two of them, asking that he meet them around lunchtime outside of the school’s local cafe. Though somewhat chilly, it was just nice enough for him to enjoy outdoor seating. A cup of chai latte in front of him, he had been spending his time with a sketchbook in hand, jotting down various ideas but also idly drawing small sketches of the changing trees and various squirrels that were busy running around as they got ready for the winter months.

As was promised he managed to get some time scheduled between the two Abigail; though given the latte sitting in front of him, it seemed that he had already found himself a decent coffee spot as well. This would be the perfect opportunity he felt. He could ‘assist’ them with their investigation, and his ‘assistance’ would also allow them to see his work up close and personal. The two would be able to finally see a scene in its purest form before investigators came in and ruined everything. Then, maybe just maybe, they would properly understand what it was he was creating.

* * *

For Caleb and Will, the week carried on as it normally did. Any disgruntlement or irritation Will felt towards Caleb simmered down quickly enough and they fell back into their usual routine. They went to class, studied, made videos for their individual channels, religiously kept up their social media, and did what they could to maintain an actual social life on campus. The only blip on their Midnight Killer radar was a mid-week press conference that had Caleb fuming as they watched it on TV. As far as Caleb was concerned, the police were trying to shoe-horn an innocent person into the suspect or accomplice role to make themselves look less incompetent. Further, to his knowledge, the stage manager didn't fit the profile Caleb himself had created and didn't make enough sense to fit the previous forty-four murders.

More than likely, during their next Midnight Killer focused video, Caleb would gladly point out everything wrong with the police's conclusions. Even more likely, considering they only made those videos after he killed, Caleb would smugly point out that there was no way the stage manager could have murdered someone while either in custody or under police surveillance. He had even gone as far as to make such statements on social media, absolutely certain that the Midnight Killer's identity was still unknown.

Over the course of the week, and as the insanity on campus died down, Will kept his eye on his phone, waiting for an incoming call or text from Jayden. A part of him half expected the artist to have forgotten about them, though he reminded himself that Jayden was a busy person and coffee with two students was likely not a top priority. Still, Jayden was the only potential in to them getting any leads on the case prior to another victim turning up dead. On that note, Will had made a point of at least reviewing some biographical information on Jayden, or at least browsing the Wikipedia entry of him, while Caleb in his usual fashion had gone on to make an entire case file out of it. Much to Will's amusement, a photocopy of 'Clare' had found its way into the file.

Due to a mix of their thesis professor's prompting, and because both of them had an agenda as it is, they made a point of working Jayden's Friday lectures into their schedules. If nothing else, Will had insisted, they were getting extra credit for it in some of their classes. Caleb, meanwhile, was less thrilled.

"Unless he's murdering someone on stage in his lectures, I don't care!"

"People aren't just going to murder on stage every time you ask for it." 

~~~

At some point after Jayden's first lecture, Caleb had hurried off to the hospital for an appointment. It was a monthly appointment, something scheduled in advance that was little more than an incredibly invasive and thorough checkup. In their freshman year, he'd joked that he was like a car that didn't have a check engine light, Will hadn't laughed, though at the time Caleb had had a broken arm and seemed more amused than anything else. While he was at the appointment, Will had gotten a message from Jayden and scrambled to let Caleb know when and where to meet them.

Will arrived promptly at noon, pulled an aged orange Jeep up to the curb a little down the road, parking, and then getting out to head over to the cafe. He'd been here before, at least once for a group project and a few other times when he really needed some caffeine. The place was usually packed during midterms and finals. Right now though, things seemed mellow enough and he spotted Jayden at one of the outside tables.

"I'm not sure being treated to coffee counts if you buy it yourself," Will said, nodding towards the cup in front of Jayden while taking one of the two seats across from the artist. The irony of a poor college student offering to pay for coffee, considering Jayden had already donated thousands to Will and Caleb, was completely lost on Will who had no way of connecting the dots. "I suppose there's always next time...?" He asked, much more at ease than he'd been at dinner the other night. "Caleb will be along shortly, he's..." Will gestured vaguely, "leaving an appointment."

A few minutes after Will had arrived, an Uber pulled up to the curb across the road. The car itself was average and unremarkable and if Will hadn't been looking he might have missed Caleb in the passenger seat entirely. A good minute or so passed with the driver talking and Caleb attempting to leave the vehicle without much success. Eventually, after what looked like a back and forth debate, Caleb got out and after looking both ways, crossed the street over to the cafe while making his way to where Will and Jayden were.

Normally Caleb's very presence was attention-drawing and loud and typically he was fairly animated. Right now though, he seemed tired and reserved, his face pale and eyes glassy while his hands were stuffed into his pockets. Shuffling over, he came to stand at Will’s side, forcing a weak smile onto his face.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said taking the seat beside Will. “The Uber driver put his hand on my knee,” he continued, slumping further down into his chair, attention unfocused as he looked skyward. “He wouldn’t stop talking and it’s my knee,” he complained, going silent a moment later.

“That’s why I don’t sit in front when I take an Uber,” Will commented, glad to have his Jeep even if it was old. “I’m going to go order," he added, getting up to get something for Caleb and himself from inside.

“He took the long way to get here too…” Caleb murmured, too out of it to do more than just sit there.

* * *

Jayden was just taking a sip from his latte when a familiar voice fell on his ears, and not a moment afterward he just chuckled. “It doesn’t. Then again, I think I was joking with that offer. Maybe” He set down his drink and then briefly tapped at his chin. “After a couple of those cocktails and a shot of tequila it’s difficult to tell where I was and wasn’t joking. Either way you’re not here for me, rather you’re here for what you can get from me” He shrugged. “So I won’t waste your time with the song and dance this time around” He finished with a soft smile and then turned his attention back to his sketchbook, simply nodding after Will said that Caleb would be arriving shortly.

It wasn’t long before the second of the duo arrived, looking rather pale and definitely not his usual self. He had expected the second to come crashing into the meeting all-business and asking a million questions, it was surprising to see him looking more reserved and out-of-character. “An interesting appointment it must have been…?” Jayden said, looking up from his sketchbook toward Caleb, a brow raised. His attention then quickly fell back down as Caleb explained what seemingly had happened - an overly talkable Uber driver with no respect for boundaries. Tragic, simply tragic.

“My condolences. You know, there’s this option they have nowadays to let your driver know you don’t wish to chat. Use it all the time, I’d say it only works about sixty-percent of the time” He said, as he continued jotting down various notes and sketches, now waiting for Will as he went off to order.

When the blonde had returned, he finally closed his little book and gave the two his full attention. “Just a preface” He started. “My gut instinct is telling me not to send two strapping young men of our community off to investigate a serial killer. Seems the making of some sort of depraved slasher flick. But the creative visionary inside me doesn’t want to stifle another’s aspirations” He sighed, then turned to an empty page and jotted down a name, a time, and an address. Afterward he ripped out the paper and handed it over.

“Anyway. I’ve managed to convince Abigail to meet with the two of you. Public library downtown, around one in the afternoon. Between what happened at the gala and the police constantly hounding her she’s been a bit on-edge, so take it easy. Doubt she’ll be as composed as I’ve been” That done, he flipped to a new page and began another sketch. “Since I’ve made up my mind to help the two of you, any other questions you want answered? Opinions? There were a couple during the dinner, sadly the only thing I clearly remember from that night is the third shot of tequila I shouldn’t have taken”

* * *

_“So I won’t waste your time with the song and dance this time around.” _

Will opened, then closed his mouth. He would be lying if he'd said they were there for any other reason and he distinctly remembered the 'no lies' agreement even if Jayden might not have recalled the details. For the most part, Jayden wasn't wrong about why they were there, but then it just left Will wondering what the catch to all of this was. Over the course of the twenty-one years he'd been alive, Will had learned quickly nothing came for free and to an extent, it put him on edge. While Jayden's attention was back on his sketchbook, Will was sorely tempted to outright ask why the artist was helping at all.

_“An interesting appointment it must have been…?” _

"Lost too much blood," Caleb said, shrugging even as his attention came done to the man across from him. "Bloodwork, I mean, I wasn't like stabbed or anything," he quickly clarified. "The MRI was the worst though..." He trailed off, not elaborating as the topic shifted to the driver.

_"Use it all the time, I’d say it only works about sixty-percent of the time." _

Caleb nodded, having been much too out of it to properly navigate the app while trying to quickly get to the cafe. Right now though, he wondered if the rush had been worth it. If he'd been more alert, he probably would have had more questions and comments for Jayden, so overall it was a pretty unfortunate situation for Caleb.

_"Seems the making of some sort of depraved slasher flick. But the creative visionary inside me doesn’t want to stifle another’s aspirations”_

  
"I have a taser," Will replied, nonchalantly as he set a steaming cup and a cookie down in front of Caleb.

"Will's got plenty of final girl vibes for the both of us," Caleb quipped, a small smile finding its way to his face.

"The word you're looking for is 'self-preservation,'" Will said as he sat with his tall cup of plain black coffee.

"Anyway," shaking his head, Caleb seemed to be trying to shake off the brain fog. "The Midnight Killer doesn't usually do pairs, he fucked up with the Greenes, I don't think we'll be in danger as long as neither of us end up drunk or are drugged."

When Jayden tore out the page, Will had reached out and accepted it while Caleb busied himself with the replenishing of his blood sugar levels. Looking at the details, Will took his phone out and entered them in as a new contact in case he lost the slip of paper.

_“Doubt she’ll be as composed as I’ve been.” _

"One in the afternoon today?" Will asked skeptically, checking the time, unsure if Jayden was serious or if he meant over the weekend or next week. "I'll be sure to contact her before the meeting."

"I wonder if you were this composed when his head came off," Caleb murmured, thinking back on watching the event and that brief moment in which he'd thought it was a joke in poor taste. "Can you imagine what it must have been like in front row seating?" He asked to no one in particular.

"...If we ever needed additional proof that psychopaths do go into journalism," Will said before taking a long sip from his cup.

_"There were a couple during the dinner, sadly the only thing I clearly remember from that night is the third shot of tequila I shouldn’t have taken.”_

"...Why are you helping us again?" Caleb asked, not at all trusting in the altruism of a virtual stranger.

"I do have a question," cookie long since devoured, Caleb reached shuffled his school bag around and retrieved a series of manila folders as well as a notebook and pen. Digging through the file,l he retrieved a photocopy of the Greenes' crime scene which he placed on the table facing Jayden. "The painting Roberto is facing, whose is it?" He asked, then frowned, "by 'whose' I mean who painted it and who was the last person to own it? The rest around him look like cheap garbage from the dollar store, but the painting he's looking at looks too pretentious to be anything but professional."

"There was something else we were wondering," Will spoke up, setting his coffee cup onto the table. "You wouldn't have happened to have known Roberto Greene? Or known of him? The victim profiles the news keeps running mentioned he was an art enthusiast, I don't think it would be a stretch to say he might have been, you know, an actual fan of yours or maybe a fan of another artist in town?"

"We've mentioned it in our livestreams," Caleb said, offhandedly, "you probably haven't seen them, but we think the killer might have been someone Roberto knew or at least trusted."

While leaving an opening for Jayden to answer, Caleb had finally taken a sip of his now cooled off drink while Will simply sat back and waited.

* * *

When Caleb said that the two of them could take on the Midnight Killer, Jayden looked up at the two back and forth. It took but a second for his eyes to show clear disbelief before he went back to looking down at his book to continue his sketches. He didn’t comment however, rather he just continued to quietly listen as the duo continued.

“Why I am helping? In case you didn’t realize, I find the two of you attractive. And older men tend to do favors for that younger guys that they find attractive” He chuckled. “If you want a more serious reason, well, I’m here in the first place to undermine all the fear and terror the killer is spreading throughout the arts. Cliche as it sounds, I want to try to be the overwhelming good force to balance out this overwhelming evil. And since the two of you seem so sure of yourselves that you have something on this case, I see nothing wrong with giving you a chance to prove your case. That’s what professors are supposed to do right? Support the students?” He paused. “Well. Soon-to-be-professor, I’m still adapting to all of this… Besides, it's a midday interview in a public space. It’s not as if the two of you are out roaming the streets at midnight to actually find the killer” He looked up and gave the two a serious look. “Right?”

He then returned back to his sketchbook and waited for the next question to come his way. Next came an inquiry about the crime scene of Roberto Greene. He didn’t even need to look at the photo to know the answer. “I know what you’re speaking of. And I do not wish to see that ever again” He said curtly, not bothering to look up from his sketch that time. “The painting was finished by a man named Geoff Garin, it’s about six years old give or take. Was bought by an entrepreneur by the name of Yosef Goldstien, who has since skipped town. He got tired of the police’s constant hounding. Apparently he never liked the painting, donated it to charity. Rumor was he only bought it in the first place was because Geoff sucked him off” He paused. “Geoff is straight by the way… supposedly” He then added.

Another bit of listening, and next came a question about his relationship to Roberto Greene.

“Yes I knew him. He was one of the first people I met when I came into town. Gods that must have been a decade ago” He said, his voice steadily getting a bit quieter. “We got along real well…” He fell completely quiet at that point, and just sat there staring long and hard at his sketchbook. There was a long bit of silence between he steeled himself enough to speak up again. “And now he’s gone. Both him and Philis. Some people are lucky enough, they turn on the news and all they see are a bunch of unknown faces. Me, I’ve lost two close friends” He said, looking up and glaring at the two now. “So you’ll understand why I don’t exactly enjoy this topic, or folks that keep asking me question after question over it… Sorry” He brought a hand up to rub the bridge of his nose and then shook his head. “I shouldn’t be getting mad at the two of you over this” He turned back down to his sketchbook, however he didn’t feel like continuing at that point so he just closed it and set it down to the side following a heavy sigh. “Shit. Maybe I shouldn’t be helping with this” He muttered to himself.

* * *

All things considered, Caleb and Will themselves were unsure how well they’d fair if confronted by the Midnight Killer. Caleb was confident they’d be fine, but then in his mind the killer was an art snob in a beret with a penchant for performance art. Will, meanwhile, was betting it was a toss up between Hannibal Lecter and Leatherface that they’d be facing if it came to that. While Caleb did have a profile, it was easy for their minds to create caricatures of what the Midnight Killer would actually be like in person.

_“And older men tend to do favors for younger guys that they find attractive.”_

“Oh so like a sugar daddy, but with a murder mystery,” Caleb commented, earning a grimace from Will.

“Do you have to call every older man you meet ‘daddy?’” Will asked, shaking his head.

_“Well. Soon-to-be-professor, I’m still adapting to all of this…”_

“I think I like the cliche answer to be perfectly honest,” Will said suddenly while thinking back on the lecture Jayden had held. “I take it you’re aiming for a position next semester?” He asked, wondering which classes Jayden might be teaching. “At least the arts department has mellowed out over the week...”

“We absolutely have something on this case,” Caleb insisted, less interested than Will was in Jayden’s academic aspirations.

_“It’s not as if the two of you are out roaming the streets at midnight to actually find the killer” ... “Right?” _

“Not yet,” Caleb said, feeling a little more exuberant despite still looking like the walking dead. “We need a more solid lead, right now I have a profile and a vague idea of where to look. ...If we knew where and when he’d kill again this would be a different story.”

“Caleb is convinced nothing short of catching the killer in the act will be enough,” Will said, quietly. “The Midnight Killer’s been careful, so there’s not a lot of physical evidence for the police to go off of as I’m sure you and the rest of the city already know.”

_“I know what you’re speaking of. And I do not wish to see that ever again”_

Will reached out and snagged the photo, giving Caleb a sidelong look as he did. There were times when he doubted Caleb understood that not everyone found his strange hobby as interesting as he did. Some people weren’t exactly excited to look at a scene of posed corpses.

_“Geoff is straight by the way… supposedly”_

“Some people are like spaghetti noodles,” Will murmured, thinking on what Jayden had said so far.

“Straight until you get them hot and wet?” Caleb replied, sipping his drink and frowning. “You got me hot chocolate?”

“No caffeine after a blood draw,” Will said simply.

“There’s no way to track who might have had the painting after it went to charity?” Caleb asked, having started jotting down notes. “Since the murders are still happening and this Goldstein guy skipped town we can probably eliminate him as a suspect.”

_“Shit. Maybe I shouldn’t be helping with this.”_

For a long while, Will and Caleb remained silent as Jayden explained his relationship to two of the deceased. Caleb, of course, looked ready to say something at points, but a nudge from Will kept him from blurting anything insensitive out. Thinking back to the photocopy of the Greene crime scene, Will cringed, knowing if someone had shown him pictures of a close friend’s corpse he’d have been upset if not outright angry.

“We can talk about something else if you’d like?” Will offered, while Caleb made a note that Jayden was friends with Roberto.

While Will seemed intent on moving to something lighter, Caleb frowned, wanting to ask if Jayden knew who else was close to Roberto Greene. As far as Caleb was concerned, he was painfully close to the Midnight Killer and social niceties were holding him back. Still, as much as Caleb wanted to close the case, he didn’t want to alienate Will by alienating Jayden. After dinner the previous night, he doubted demanding a list of names would go over well.

“There’s only so much you can learn from a Wikipedia article,” Caleb chipped in, for once using some common sense to not reveal he’d gone as far as to make an entire case file from what information he could get about Jayden.

* * *

“Well, I was the one who arranged this meeting and offered to answer any questions so I know of what I was getting into here” He responded after a slight pause where he took a moment to calm himself. After ward a brief silence fell between the trio, and Jayden used the opportunity to finish off the rest of his latte and study the expressions of the duo. Will seemed sympathetic, as expected. Decent sense of empathy, he thought. Caleb looked more studious, cogs were turning in his head and it was obvious that he wished to continue down this line of conversation. Shame he was blocked from inquiring further due to social norms.

“Oh no, we can continue. Just no photos of the deceased” He said, opening up the conversation again. “I already know how this will turn out, I went through this once before back when Philis was murdered. Both with the police and my personal lawyers. She was a good drinking buddy of mines, we went out Thursday nights to the same bar for drinks. One night we had our fun at our usual bar, I offered her a ride home which she declined, and she turned up missing the next day. Weeks later, she was found inside of her own art gallery. Died of alcohol poisoning and surrounded by her greatest pieces, died the way that she lived. Considering the circumstances of her death, our close relationship, and me being the last to see her that night the police had be chalked down on this list of primary suspects” He shrugged. “So many interviews, so many warrants, and nothing came from it. Nothing ever came of it other than inconvenience and wasted time. Not to say that I was the only victim here, there were others subjected to their investigative ‘techniques’ as well” He glanced upward and touched his upper lip thoughtfully, thinking a bit. “To be honest I’m surprised that they avoided us… ‘us’ being the city socialites... entirely after Roberto’s death. It was no secret how much he adored the art community, even if that adoration was way above his pay grade. I had fully expected another wave of investigations and warrants in the weeks that followed. And yet Nothing of the sort came to pass. I’ve no idea why myself, but if you ask me I think they’re fearing a wave of privacy-related lawsuits on the off-chance that they accidentally overstep their boundaries“

He paused again then reached down and reopened his sketchbook, acting as if he had calmed himself. “Well that was a bit of a tangent. My original point was that this would turn out the same as before. You ask me all sorts of intrusive questions in an attempt to pin me down as the killer. Ultimately nothing comes out of it as I am not, in fact, the killer. I will admit it does seem likely though, doesn’t it? I knew two of the victims after all, one of whom I was with the day she went missing. *I* would suspect myself” He paused. “But. That is really only due to me being good friends with pretty much *everyone* in the art community. God forbid, should a *third* art lover wound up missing next week chances are I would know them just as well, likely would have had coffee with them the afternoon of their disappearance even. Maybe I’d end up making the list of prime suspects again, alongside every other prominent artist in the city once more” Another pause, then he simply shook his head. “Well... Given how sheepish the police have been lately, likely not”

He took his pen, then flipped to another page and resumed his sketching. “On that note, any other questions? I’m curious about how far you’re going to dig here”

* * *

_“Well, I was the one who arranged this meeting and offered to answer any questions so I know of what I was getting into here” _

“To be entirely fair, you were a little drunk at dinner,” grabbing one of Caleb’s case files, the one on Jayden in particular, Will began leafing through it.

“Right,” Caleb started, reaching out for his file, “that totally messes up the informed consent thing.”

“...Are you saying this meeting is nonconsensual?” Will swatted at Caleb, still skimming.

“He hasn’t told us to stop yet,” Caleb quipped while taking his file back.

“Jesus Christ, Caleb.” Will sat back, then looked up to the sky as if to ask the universe why his closest friend was like this.

_“Considering the circumstances of her death, our close relationship, and me being the last to see her that night the police had be chalked down on this list of primary suspects” _

“Philis…” Caleb murmured the name, frowning and eyeing his files and sighed. That case had been far enough back that he hadn’t brought the case file for that particular victim along. “If I remember correctly, there was no sign of forced entry, so she likely let the killer in… I’m not sure how trusting your friend was, but most people bar entry to strangers late at night.”

“We aren’t accusing you of anything,” Will said, glancing over at Caleb again. “For all we know you could be a potential victim too,” he added, then paused. “Not to freak you out or anything, realistically anyone could be a victim.”

“Alison Greene got the short end of the stick there,” Caleb commented. “We don’t think she was an intended target, more of an accident.”

“At least she left their kid at home,” Will murmured, grimacing. “We’ve got multiple murders, one instance of a double homicide, child murder just seems...evil, I guess.”

_“I’ve no idea why myself, but if you ask me I think they’re fearing a wave of privacy-related lawsuits on the off-chance that they accidentally overstep their boundaries“ _

“So not only are the police incompetent, they’re scared off by mobs of nerds in suits,” Caleb grumbled as he made a few notes. “And you’d think, considering one of their own had his head cut off, every stuck up asshole in this city would want to cooperate to catch the Midnight Killer.”

“Society is the real villain of this story,” Will commented, a thoughtful look on his face. “The legal system impeding the legal system, why am I not surprised.”

_“Well... Given how sheepish the police have been lately, likely not”_

Caleb looked up from his notebook and eyed Jayden oddly for a moment. Shaking his head, he went ahead and crossed out something he had written. Will, meanwhile, just seemed to be thinking something over. Neither of them spoke for a good moment as Jayden went back to sketching.

_“On that note, any other questions? I’m curious about how far you’re going to dig here”_

  
“So out of all the people you know, not a single one stands out as someone who might be inclined to go around killing people?” Caleb asked finally. “More than likely, you probably know or know of the killer.”

“We may or may not have confirmed a few suspicions about the killer’s identity,” Will said with a sigh, not sure he liked where they were going with this.

“For the last year we’ve suspected the killer was either an artist or someone who viewed themselves as an artist, or maybe aspired to be one.” Caleb went on, pausing only to collect his thoughts. “As the cases piled up it became apparent that the killer isn’t some weirdo basement dweller scribbling with crayolas or a disgruntled starving artist. I’d figure the culprit is well-connected, probably has some degree of recognition and might even come across as charismatic.”

“Hypothetically it could be a large number of people, but if we narrow it down to artists…” Will added, earning a nod from Caleb. “It cuts the pool of suspects down to begin an actual investigation.”

“For reasons I’m sure you understand, neither of us are in a position to actually investigate a string of murders.” Will had long since finished off his coffee and seemed disappointed his cup was empty. “College students aren’t exactly allowed to enter crime scenes or go around interrogating people.”

“Anyway, to make a long story short,” Caleb shifted through his files and opened one that was rather worn and old. “Due to recent developments, we’re certain the killer is a man and he makes enough to spend thousands of dollars trolling kids on the internet.”

“...Uh...to give it some context, we have a livestream series about the Midnight Killer and recently someone has been donating a lot of money and leaving strange comments and questions.” Sighing, Will glanced forlornly towards the cafe, then back over at Jayden. “It could just be someone with a lot of money trolling us.”

“Or it could be the Midnight Killer,” Caleb said with an air of finality.

“We do still have the chat log, and the donations,” Will said, sounding resigned, “but the problem is we can’t exactly trace who it came from.”

* * *

“When I say sheepish, I mean that the police are hesitant to actually declare any suspects. For all I know I could have made their list of persons of interest to investigate, but given their hesitancy these days they’ll never go through with an actual investigation” Jaden pondered.

“However, to be perfectly honest and much as a hate to say it the persons threatening lawsuits are in the right here. There’s a fine line between an investigation and full-blown harassment, and their prior handling of these cases crossed that line many, many times. There has to be some form of defense against this, else why even have any privacy at all? But that’s delving a bit into philosophy, isn’t it? How bad does a criminal need to be before folks willingly begin to surrender their rights in the hope that the authorities actually become competent?” He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms firmly. “I cooperated fully when Philis ended up dead, they pushed boundaries of what the law allowed but I needed to go along with it in order to clear my name. If, for whatever reason, they feel the need to put me through that again however then I will definitely be joining the ranks of people hiding behind lawyers”

He then closed his eyes and listened as another question came his way.

“While I agree that the killer has a sick interpretation of art, tell me again why you think they are a part of the upper crust? Is it because of what happened at the gala?” He questioned. “Abigail might be able to touch on this better than I, but there were a lot of people working behind the scenes there. Handyman, contractors, interns as well I think. The culprit could very well be a student on this very campus” Jaden’s eyes immediately shot open when he realized what he had said. “Actually, uh, scratch that. It’d be remiss of me to start suspecting students” He then shook his head. “Anyway. Much as I would love to, can’t give out names. My opinion carries a bit of weight, if word got out that I had started singling out people well... “ He shrugged. “...I still have a reputation to consider. All I can offer you are interviews with folks, and that’s only is they’re willing to talk to a couple of overly-eager college students”

He then raised a brow curiously when they had brought up the issue of the money they had been receiving. “College students complaining about having too much money? That’s a first” Jaden chuckled. Initially he didn’t seem to take the two seriously but after watching their expressions he straightened out. “How convinced are you that it’s the killer?” Jaden then asked, looking a bit concerned now. “Have you reported this to the police?”

* * *

_“When I say sheepish…” … “...but given their hesitancy these days they’ll never go through with an actual investigation” _

Caleb and Will exchanged a look. A list of possible suspects compiled by the police likely existed and while Caleb had a profile he didn’t necessarily have names or faces to compare that profile to just yet. Of course, he guessed that if a list existed it likely wouldn’t see the light of day anytime soon and he doubted he’d ever get his hands on it.

_”If, for whatever reason, they feel the need to put me through that again however then I will definitely be joining the ranks of people hiding behind lawyers”_

“The police are going to need hard physical evidence with how things are going,” Caleb said with dismay. “I’m surprised the feds haven’t gotten involved by the forty-five victim mark,” he added, then seemed to consider that. “They probably don’t want to look bad or face a lawsuit themselves.”

“It would also make this a national incident if they stepped in,” Will commented, deciding he didn’t need more coffee. “As far as we know, the Midnight Killer hasn’t gone across state lines to kill, so that may be why.”

“That just sounds like a lazy excuse on the FBI’s part,” Caleb slumped back into his seat with a huff. “Considering the most recent murder happened on a nationally televised event it’s already a national incident.”

_“Is it because of what happened at the gala?” _

“I’d show you my case files, but you seem a bit squeamish,” Caleb responded. “I suspected it had to have been someone well-connected, affluent, with an appreciation for art around victim number… I want to say victim number ten? Your friend Phillis’ murder only seemed to support that and I guess the police figured the same.” Sliding further down his seat, Caleb looked tired all over again, his earlier burst of exuberance catching up to him. “I know early on it was just a gut instinct, I even thought he might be a politician based on the profile I put together, but...looking at the crime scenes...that didn’t seem right.”

Will tried to look nonchalant, but everytime Caleb got like this and started going on about the killer and the crime scenes there was a mood shift. As far as Will knew, Caleb had never had any particular interest in anything remotely artistic beyond his own writing. Still, when Caleb looked at the crime scene photos, the look on his face was never disgust or purely analytic. If people weren’t being murdered, Will himself might have found the macabre subject matter compelling, at least. Actually, he was certain that if the images weren’t literal crime scene photos they might have had a print or two hanging in their house. He was absolutely certain that if Caleb was still living in his old apartment alone, the photos would have been hanging up regardless of the fact they featured actual deceased people.

_“Actually, uh, scratch that. It’d be remiss of me to start suspecting students” _

“Any students in particular?” Caleb asked with just the barest hint of humor in his voice. “Handymen and interns don’t usually have a hand in planning to have a guillotine on stage, do they? The killer was involved in planning the event, I’m certain.”

_”All I can offer you are interviews with folks, and that’s only is they’re willing to talk to a couple of overly-eager college students”_

“We can work with a few interviews,” Will said, content that they were getting that much.

“I might be able to spin this…” Caleb looked thoughtful as he considered how to best make use of a few interviews. “An article on police harassment?” He asked, looking to Will as if waiting for a yes or no.

“The Ithaca Post has bought and published your work in the past,” Will answered, though not how Caleb was hoping he would. “And the police aren’t very popular at the moment.”

“You wouldn’t happen to know the owner of the local paper, would you?” Caleb asked, attention back on Jayden for a moment. “I’ve gotten things published as a freelancer before, but not something like this.”

_“How convinced are you that it’s the killer?” ... “Have you reported this to the police?”_

“Please, as if we want the police involved,” Caleb said with a grimace. “The Midnight Killer case isn’t their first and only fuck up.”

“And neither of us are particularly interested in being incompetently harassed and victim blamed by the police.” Sighing, Will didn't look all that happy with where the conversation was going. “Caleb approached them once, early on in the string of murders, and that didn’t go well at all.”

“They’ve proved in the past they can’t handle a run of the mill stalker,” Caleb grumbled and Will stiffened. “They also apparently don’t want to have ‘some kid’ tell them how to do their job.”

“Anyway, someone mentioned in the last stream that it was possible that the Midnight Killer could be watching the stream,” Will started, sensing Caleb’s darkening mood. “And that there was a rumor we might have inspired Sir William’s murder.”

“I made one comment about a guillotine before that,” Caleb quipped, almost defensively.

“We’re sure that it’s earlier the killer or someone with a lot of money and a bizarre sense of humor,” Will concluded. “I’ve had one stalker before, so you can imagine why I’d want to avoid another.”

* * *

“Haven’t heard anything myself about any FBI involvement. Really is interesting how they’ve allowed something like this to fester for so long” Jaden said with a sigh. “I’m not one for rumors, but if you ask me it’s someone higher up putting a block on things. One of the legislatures, maybe the governor even. Really big on state rights and all of that, wouldn’t surprise me if they’ve been using every avenue to turn away federal help” He shrugged. “Or maybe this is all due to our politicians being a bunch of old men with fragile egos, repeating to themselves in desperate fashion that they still have full control over things”

Jaden then scoffed when he was called squeamish. “We all have our limits. Mines just happen to be dead bodies. Plus I doubt the victims would appreciate the photos of their last moments circulated around and discussed over coffee and pleasant conversation” However, he did nod a bit at Caleb’s reasoning for who the killer could be. “And here I thought this was some sort of minor project or yours or something. Seems you’ve been putting a great deal of thought into these matters” He thought for a moment, then glanced over and tilted his head slightly. “What did you say your Youtube channel was again? Maybe I should have done research into the two of you after all”

Afterward, he glanced upward and tapped his chin thoughtfully. “All that makes sense, but that’s still a wide net isn’t it? Big city, with many powerful people in it. Even narrowing it down to the ones with an appreciation for art will not help much… believe it or not, it’s actually not an uncommon hobby. Well, not uncommon amongst the wealthy at least. It’s how I make my living afterall. Though…” He paused. “...One could limit it further to just those who are actually artists, or have a genuine understanding of art theory. But doing so would be admitting that the crime scenes are artwork, I think at least” He frowned, then shook his head. “This would be genuinely interesting if it were a crime drama on Netflix or something, not something we have to experience ourselves”

He continued frowning when Caleb next asked for names of students. “The two of you” He said flatly, then shrugged. “I wouldn’t know how things were organized at the Gala. From the way everything looked it seemed like they needed a lot of hands to do all the set-up for the props and stage. I could tell you more had I been backstage that night. But had I been, I’d probably be talking to the police right now. Not the two of you”

He continued to listen to their words about their prior, apparently unfortunate, run-ins with the police. “You had a stalker?” He said, suddenly looking concerned at the thought. “Did they ever catch him?”

* * *

_“Or maybe this is all due to our politicians being a bunch of old men with fragile egos, repeating to themselves in desperate fashion that they still have full control over things”_

Caleb seemed to consider Jayden’s words, deciding that it made sense. Presumably, if local law enforcement was incompetent one would hope authorities higher up would step in to handle things. He also wouldn’t put it past local and state politicians covering up the problem as well. Then there was an older theory he had that perhaps the killer was a politician, though that didn’t work out as well when he really looked at the crime scene photos. He couldn’t imagine a stuffy old man worried about how he looked during election season creating scenes like that.

_“Plus I doubt the victims would appreciate the photos of their last moments circulated around and discussed over coffee and pleasant conversation”_

“Huh,” examining one of his currently closed case files, Caleb once again considered what Jayden had said. “I hadn’t thought of it that way.”

_“Maybe I should have done research into the two of you after all” _

“I can send you the link,” Will offered, pulling out his phone and opened the conversation between himself and Jayden. “There are actually three channels,” he said, linking the one to the joined account they’d specifically made for the Midnight Killer case. “There’s the main one, ’The Midnight Killer Murders’,” he then went on to link both his and Caleb’s independent channels for reference. “Caleb covers cold cases and other crimes on his personal channel and I focus more on urban exploring and paranormal stuff.”

_“This would be genuinely interesting if it were a crime drama on Netflix or something, not something we have to experience ourselves”_

“So you don’t think the crime scenes are artwork,” Caleb commented, not really asking and only partially concluding based on what Jayden was saying. “I guess it’s hard to call photos of dead bodies art if that’s what squicks you out,” he went on, shrugging. “I still think the killer is someone you’re probably already familiar with.”

_“But had I been, I’d probably be talking to the police right now. Not the two of you”_

Caleb couldn’t help but weakly smile at the thought that someway, somehow himself and Will were capable of pulling off a single one of the murders that had happened. There was a running inside joke within their circle of friends that one day Caleb would get bored investigating crimes and start committing them. He suspected it was only a matter of time before it became a meme among their fans.

“I guess we’ll just have to wait to talk to Abigail,” Will said, doubting they’d get much more about the guillotine incident out of Jayden.

_“Did they ever catch him?”_

“Will had a stalker,” Caleb confirmed, “though I am pretty sure the guy wanted me dead, so…”

“It’s...not something I like to talk about,” Will started, deciding he might as well get it out sooner rather than later so Jayden had some idea of what he was getting into involving himself with them. “Around...six or so months ago another student who was apparently a fan of mine introduced himself,” he started, recalling the memory. “He was nice enough and we had a few shared interests, so I agreed to go out with him a few times. Something personal came up and...basically he went off the deep end about it and it all went to hell from there.”

“It was a fucking circus is what it was,” Caleb said, irritating edging in on his tone. “The creep was sending Will threatening messages online and in real life but the police sat on their hands about it because ‘he hadn’t done anything illegal yet.’”

“To make a very long story short, he was eventually caught and all the social media stuff was taken down or made private afterwards.” Will was looking down now, nervous all over again from the memory alone. “The damage was done, but he’s in prison now at least.”

“He literally broke into the house and tried to stab me before the police did anything,” Caleb continued, more angry at the memory than anything. “We had come home from a party and a mutual friend was helping us into the house.”

“I was...pretty drunk,” Will admitted, knowing their friend, Marcus, had to all but carry him inside while Caleb lead the way. “Caleb was only a little tipsy.”

“Anyway, I wandered into the kitchen and almost got an eye taken out,” Caleb continued, recalling the rush of adrenaline that followed seeing a knife narrowly miss him. “It’s all kind of a blur after that, but our designated driver for the night also happens to be a linebacker, so you can imagine how it played out.”

“We’ve been more cautious since then,” Will added, “though I’m not sure if it’ll do much against someone with a body count of forty-five.”

* * *

“That would be easier, yes” Jaden nodded to Will when he suggested to just send him the links to their respective channels. “I’ll admit that I’m not too big on Youtube, but I’ll give it a look later on if I have the time”

He then nodded when Caleb commented that he didn’t believe the murders to be art. “Defining it as art would be giving the murderer validity” He said simply. “It takes away from the gruesomeness of the murders, the loss of life. If the killer wishes to make a point about society, there are many, many other avenues to do so” He paused. “Though I do worry that people would eventually get used to all of this, it’s so easy to get desensitized to things in this day and age. Folks might someday lose sight of the crime and start thinking him some sort of avant-garde visionary. Terrible thought”

He then listened to the story of their stalker patiently, quietly, and found that it was far deeper than he had originally anticipated. Unfortunately, the story came to a close with the stalker supposedly being behind bars. Terrible, just terrible, it meant he couldn’t punish the man himself.

“Sorry to hear that the two of you had to go through such a thing” Jaden replied, genuinely sympathetic. “Tis the downside of fame. People think that it’s all glitz and glamour, but there’s a dark, shadowy side to it that very rarely even reaches the public eye” He paused, thinking back on their earlier statements regarding the money and the killer potentially watching them. “That said… speaking of stalkers... it doesn’t make me comfortable knowing that the killer might have their sights set on the two of you…” His brows furrowed and he crossed his arms to try and think. “Have you gotten any odd phone calls, or noticed any odd individuals trying to force themselves in your life?” He then asked, glancing back up at the two. “Have you given thought about arranging a transfer at the very least?”

* * *

_“I’ll admit that I’m not too big on Youtube, but I’ll give it a look later on if I have the time”_

“You don’t really strike me as someone who frequents YouTube for the fun of it,” Will said with a shrug. “To be fair, our subject matter isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, so I wouldn’t be the least bit offended if you don’t like it.”

_If the killer wishes to make a point about society, there are many, many other avenues to do so” _

“Other avenues that aren’t as attention-drawing or shocking,” Caleb replied tiredly. “People make a point about society all the time and the message gets overlooked, but when people start dying it’s hard for anyone to ignore it.”

_“Terrible thought”_

“Art or not, people are going to still be discussing all of this long after we’re all dead.” Caleb seemed to consider something, then shook his head, deciding that pointing out where the Midnight Killer placed on body count was a little much. “You can’t have a conversation about murder without someone bringing up Jack the Ripper and his killing spree is over a hundred years old.”

_“People think that it’s all glitz and glamour, but there’s a dark, shadowy side to it that very rarely even reaches the public eye” _

“That reminds me, we did receive notice that there’s an upcoming parole hearing,” Will murmured, not wanting to think about it. “He was only charged with breaking and entering and one count of attempted assault. ...Apparently good behavior makes up for it.”

_“Have you given thought about arranging a transfer at the very least?”_

“I don’t think the killer has our numbers,” Will said after a moment. “Well, not yet, a highly motivated stalker can manage a lot of things I’ve found. It’s doubtful he knows where we live, but we’ve never been discreet about where we go to school.”

“Transfering isn’t much of an option,” Caleb added, “finals for this semester are coming up quick and then it’s one semester until graduation in spring.”

“I’d also have to sell or rent out the house if we were planning on uprooting ourselves to run from this.” Looking pensive, Will considered their options. “My last stalker wasn’t enough to make me run away, so I don’t see why this should be any different.”

“Worst case scenario,” Caleb said after a moment, “if we’re in immediate danger we can always hop on a plane after graduation and lay low for a while.”

* * *

“Hm” Jaden listened, not sounding too relieved by the response that he got. “Well. You might have had a bad experience before, but if anything worsens it would be best to go to the police” He repeated. “Or. You could send me a text, and then I’ll do to the police. Might get them to actually do something about things if i’m the one complaining” He mused. “Though hopefully this all really is just a prank”

Far off in the distance, the deep resounding sound of bells echoed throughout the campus. Upon hearing them, Jaden took out his phone and confirmed the time. “And that would be my cue to leave. Only had this hour to spare. The Dean of Arts wanted my opinion on which color pallets ought to be utilized for the landscaping class in the spring” He said, letting out a sigh of disbelief not a moment afterward. “Shame that we can’t speak like this under less morbid circumstances, I actually enjoyed the conversation”

Jaden quickly pocketed his phone again as he stood up, then reached for his sketchbook and held it underneath an arm. “I’ll send you time and location for the interview when I get a chance later on, just for confirmation purposes. Remember, don’t press her too hard. Pretty sure she had PTSD which hasn’t been helped by all of the suspicion and harassment she’s been receiving from the police. Till then” He nodded, then took off on his way.

* * *

_“Though hopefully this all really is just a prank”_

“I don’t know if the police can do much since they aren’t having much luck finding the Midnight Killer as it is,” for the most part, Will sounded resigned. “I’ll be sure to text if anything serious happens though,” he continued.

“If it is a prank we’re at least laughing all the way to the bank,” Caleb piped up.

_“Shame that we can’t speak like this under less morbid circumstances, I actually enjoyed the conversation”_

“You have our number,” Will offered, leaving an opening if Jayden wanted to talk more or about anything else. “Well, mine I guess, I can send you Caleb’s if he’s alright with that?”

“Sure,” Caleb shrugged, not too concerned. “It’s not like he’s the killer stalking us.”

_“Till then” _

Will nodded, making note of everything Jayden told them. He certainly had no intention of worsening Abigail’s state of mind, though he would likely have to reign Caleb in prior to the meeting and possibly during it. At some point, he went ahead and sent Caleb’s number to Jayden as well. Once Jayden was out of sight, Will went about assisting Caleb with reorganizing the table and putting the various case files away.

“Well, he’s last on my list of possible suspects,” Caleb said, slinging his bag over one shoulder while following Will to the battered old jeep on the curb.

“You need to eat something and rest when we get home,” Will started as they buckled up and he began pulling away from their parking spot. “...To be honest, I’m more concerned he’ll end up another victim if the killer is as close as we think.”

“If the killer is that close do you think he’d be happy we’re talking to Jayden? Or Abigail?” For a moment, Caleb contemplated the ramifications. “I wonder if there’s a way to try to draw him out, or predict his next victims.”

“Drawing him out is a terrible idea,” Will insisted as they went home.

-

Jayden smiled to himself as he walked off. He now had both their numbers and knew that they had no plans to leave town. Such a pleasant thought made dealing with colors and palettes for the next hour or so almost bearable.

On top of it all, the pair didn’t seem to suspect him, something he found most amusing of all. They had correctly guessed his methods, how he went out of his way to befriend potential targets, and yet didn’t seem to notice that they were falling into the exact same snare. Then again, it wasn’t the most obvious trap to detect. It just wasn’t feasible to be suspicious of every single person that decided to go out of their way to be nice or to do a good deed.

This arrangement they had would be interesting though, to say the least. Both entertaining and humorous as he helped them catch himself. He did wonder however if they actually were potential targets of his though. He could do things, many things, using the two of them.The inspiration was certainly there. However, he couldn’t help but feel a bit… odd… over potentially utilizing them in one of his works.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	6. Abigail Walters I

Abigail Walters had been a small town girl swept up and swallowed whole by the big city life. A student of journalism and media studies, her rise to fame started on Instagram of all places. Her account started as a joke, an outlet for her to pose in varying degrees of businesswear as the cliche ‘sexy secretary’. The joke however quickly exploded into a full-blown following that quickly garnered hundreds of thousands of followers within the timeframe of a few months. Abigail never knew what was the cause of the popularity explosion - a tweet from a celebrity, maybe she had been mentioned on a popular lifestream? But it left her with little choice but to continue, the joke becoming serious as suddenly found herself with nearly a million fans to please.  
  
  
That wasn’t to say that she hated her sudden fame. It was quite the contrary. She wasn’t in swimsuits or modeling half-naked, all that was required was a slightly suggestive photo here and there in a pantsuit or a business skirt. In fact, the only risque photo she took was one particular skirt that happened to rise just a bit too high above the knees. There were of course calls for more - from her fans, from varying porn studios, but they were always rejected as politely as she was able.  
  
  
Things however changed when she started getting legitimate offers from businesses, powerful men at the top of their fields who wanted to claim the secretary for themselves. For the longest time she was skeptical of these offers, but as these men continued to ping and message her through varying channels she quickly realized just how big of a gold mine she now somehow gotten access to.  
  
  
That was precisely how she stumbled across Sir William. The man was persistent and didn’t seem the type to take no for an answer. Before she knew it he had her flown in first-class on a private jet and given a tour of the his’s various offices and properties. Her position at Sir William’s side was never formally accepted. After she had been flow in, the man gave her the keys to her own penthouse suite and that was that. She saw little reason to return home afterward.  
  
  
For years she remained at the man’s side. His dutiful secretary, doing everything that was asked of her, many of which she swore to carry to her grave. Though she learned of many who resented, even hated, the man, she personally carried no strong opinions of him. It was her duty to do as she was told, keep things organized, and stroke the man’s ego for as many times as he needed, nothing more nothing less. He paid well and so long as the money continued to flow she had no qualms playing the part of the perfect secretary.  
  
  
This all changed with the gala. Everything had gone as planned She did everything that was asked of her and organized everything in meticulous detail. Except everything backfired within a matter of seconds.. Sir William wound up beheaded before a live audience, and she watched it all firsthand from backstage. A massive investigation followed that tarnished her reputation beyond repair and there was no escape from it all. She spent more time at the police station being interrogated and yelled at than at her own home. She couldn’t hide away online as the majority of her fans completely turned on her as well, all convinced that she was the cause of the stunt and that she was some sort of genius-level gold-digger for accomplishing what she did. It didn’t help either when people started linking this murder with the others done by the Midnight Killer, nor did it help that Sir Williams’ estate lawyers started threatening potential lawsuits and further investigation over what she supposedly ‘accomplished’. Even on her own she didn’t feel safe, she felt constantly hounded, constantly stalked. There was no peace to be found. Nightly when she wasn’t crying herself to sleep, she pondered over a glass of water and pills whether she should just end it all. Succumb to the darkness and do away with all the hatred and harassment that the world was giving her.  
  
  
And then a hand of friendship was extended, and once again her world completely turned on its axis.  
  
  
Abigail remembered Jayden Mattis from one of the preliminary gala discussions, the one Sir William explicitly ordered that she wiped from her memory. She remembered him being handsome, but other than that she recalled very little of the events of the meeting. For him to suddenly come into her life however, when she was at her lowest point, was like a breath of fresh air.  
  
  
The two of them connected almost instantly. He spoke of his own story, how the police harassed him and how his so-called allies and associates happily assumed him guilty and turned against him. He offered the services of his personal lawyer free of charge to help her navigate the political workings of everything, and provided both support and a shoulder to cry on after her near-weekly meetings at the police station.  
  
  
He had provided her with such great advice and support that when he suggested that he meet up with a pair of college students she saw no reason to decline. It seemed odd at first, but when he explained that the pair were apparently famous YouTube stars, how using them to tell her side of the story would definitely improve her reputation online, it all made perfect sense.  
  
  
  
-  
  
  
That was how she found himself sitting in the middle of a library on a warm, sunny Saturday afternoon. Like any person hounded by police and paparazzi, she had on a large overcoat and a pair of large, dark spectacles. Her auburn hair, normally kept in a tight bun, flowed freely behind her as she waited.  
  
  
Though she tried to remain calm it was obvious how nervous she was. This would potentially be her one chance to clear her name, and she didn’t want to blow it. Furthermore, she had instructions. Jayden suggested that she get both of their numbers, the best way for them to stay in contact should she remember anything or need to clarify something. Also, she wasn’t to speak a word about Jayden’s involvement with the gala, or the assistance he was giving her during its aftermath. His reasoning made sense, to her at least. He simply didn’t want to be dragged into the whole mess surrounding Sir William’s murder, and knowing how hellish her life currently was that was something she fully understood. Besides, it wasn’t as if he was the murderer. Someone so nice, so handsome and so considerate could never be someone so depraved to force everyone to watch a live beheading.

* * *

“Have you noticed that our follower count is creeping up?” Will asked as they were getting ready to leave to their me library. “After the last Q and A stream it’s been steadily increasing, more than it had previously.”  
  
“Yeah, but now we have people demanding more content on The Midnight Killer,” Caleb replied with a frown. “People don’t seem to get that we only make videos when he kills.”  
  
“We can use our interview with Abigail for an extra video?” Will offered, “if she agrees, obviously, but...from the sound of it, a lot of people suspect her of being involved with the murders.”  
  
“Same with the stage manager,” sighing, Caleb suddenly found himself irate. “Anyone with one fuctioning brain cell can tell neither of them did it.”  
  
“Right, so maybe we can help each other,” Will said with a certainty that Abigail could use any good publicity. “You’re still planning on writing an article too, right?”  
  
“Yeah, I’m thinking that an article on police harassment is the way to go with that.” Thinking it over, Caleb tried to find any drawbacks. “It won’t endear us to the police… Fuck, Brian’s parole hearing is coming up soon too and I don’t have a good feeling about that.”  
  
“If he gets out and comes after us again, the police might sit on their hands,” Will confirmed what Caleb was thinking. “It might be best to avoid outright antagonizing the police at this point.”  
  
“We haven’t given after graduation much thought, have we?” Caleb hesitated for just a moment, unsure of himself in a way he rarely was. “After graduation we don’t have to stay,” he conceded. “If getting help from Jayden doesn’t crack this case open then it might be a lost cause.”  
  
“That’s...uncharacteristically reasonable of you,” frowning, Will shook his head. “We can talk about it as the date approaches, I’m still not running away from everything, not even the Midnight Killer.”  
  
~  
  
Over the course of the morning, the pair managed to throw together a reasonable breakfast before departing. Will had double checked all doors and windows were locked, unable to shake the feeling that something was somehow wrong and he couldn’t put his finger on it. He supposed it may have been simple paranoia, which made him wonder if therapy would help. When he mentioned it, Caleb cracked a Hannibal Lecter joke and the idea was much less appealing after.  
  
“No photos of dead bodies and try not to say anything psychotic when we meet Abigail,” parking in front of the library, Will turned and gave Caleb a suspicious look. “Also, try not to put her on edge, I’m sure it's bad enough as it is.”  
  
In response, Caleb gave a dismissive hand wave, but understood well enough. They got out of Will’s jeep and started up the steps. Will had stuck with neutral things he normally wore to school, deciding plain dark jeans and a button down would give a better impression than ripped jeans and plaid. Caleb, for his part, dressed as he normally did in layers of neutral tones and blues.  
  
They were a few minutes early, Will had noted as they made their way up the steps and through the front door. It took a minute for them to locate Abigail and for a brief moment Will was nervous himself. They were both certain she wasn’t the killer and yet that feeling of unease Will had when checking the house followed him. Regardless, they couldn’t stand around or run away, so they approached.  
  
“Hello, Abigail?” Will asked, wanting to at least confirm they hadn’t gotten the wrong person, though the woman in front of them was clearly the one from the picture Jayden had shown them. “My name’s Will and this is Caleb,” he started, Caleb gave a small wave, but seemed content to let Will do the talking for now. “Do you mind if we sit down? We have a few questions, but...I’m sure you’ve heard that a lot lately.” Pausing, Will considered the situation. “Or if you’d rather tell us your side of things, we can save the questions for later?”  
  
“Do you mind if I record?” Caleb asked, after giving Abigail time to react to Will’s string of questions. He held up a pocket sized audio recorder. “It’s mostly so I don’t misquote you or anything.”  
  
“We decided to leave cameras out of this,” Will continued, “not everyone is comfortable with a camera in their face while talking about...well, you know.”

* * *

The woman looked up at the two, dark green eyes glancing over suspiciously for the briefest of moments. “You two must be the ones he spoke of” She said after the duo introduced themselves. Her expression then softened up just slightly. “I’m glad. I… I’ve been completely lost, ever since it happened. Everyone glaring, all the finger-pointing, I don’t know how to navigate any of this at all” She paused, then continued in her soft, melodic voice. “But maybe, hopefully, this might just change things”  
  
  
She nodded when they asked if they recorded before she began her story. “Sir William was an asshole, make no mistake” She started. “Many people already knew this, he knew this very well himself. However he was an asshole that I was in charge over. His schedule, meetings, appointments, dietary needs, mistresses.. I knew everything, and anything about the man. No one liked him, but no one wanted to kill him” She said plainly. “Well, I’m sure there are many people who thought of many ways to do the deed, but no one out there had the balls to actually _do_ the deed. He was far to powerful. They knew that any untimely death would create a ripple effect across our economy, it just wasn’t worth the trouble. As for myself, well, the man backrolled my entire livelihood. Removing him from the picture meant falling back down to middle-class mendacity. And I’ve been trying to tell people this the entire time. I never liked the man, but I happily tolerated him as it meant securing my pent-house suite, limosine rides, weekly yoga, and daily deliveries of fresh bouquets and exotic coffee bean imported direct from Columbia. And in return all I needed to do was look pretty and keep track of things via a couple of phone apps. Easiest job ever, and now I’m left with nothing. My yoga instructor said last month that I had a tragic star hovering over my chakras, I should have taken him seriously and quit things while I was ahead. Asked for a bonus and take myself on a nice, long vacation” She shook her head.  
  
  
“I will tell you the exact same that I told the police, hopefully you might listen. I don’t know what happened at the gala. There were no delays, and security was all in place at the appropriate checkpoints. Everything was set in stone the day prior, and explicit instructions were given for there to not be any last minute changes. However that bitch of a stage manager couldn’t follow simple instructions. No last minute changes means. No. Last. Minute. Changes. How the hell she even became manager of such a prestigious event is beyond my understanding” She muttered and folded her arms indignantly. “In case you don’t already know, the dunce got last minute instructions from a masked man to roll out Sir William and leave him alone on stage for the entirety of the skit. Orders that were signed by the board of directors and Sir William himself, she continues to plead to this day” She scoffed. “With sketchy as everything is nowadays, you would think a girl would have the common sense to be suspicious of a mask man coming out of nowhere giving any kind of order. It wasn’t even a masked ball, it was Nineteenth-century decadence! Masquerades were _Fifteenth_-century! I can’t… I just can’t...”

* * *

_“But maybe, hopefully, this might just change things”_

  
While Abigail explained her predicament and recent woes befalling her after Sir William’s murder, Caleb had to wonder not for the first time if there was something wrong with him. He didn’t feel _unsympathetic_ per se, but he found that he ultimately didn’t care what became of Abigail’s reputation over all of this. He did, however, believe with absolute confidence Abigail and the stage manager were both innocent of any intentional involvement with the staged execution.  
  
Not for the first time, Caleb had to wonder if perhaps they were all guilty to a degree. Many bits and pieces had to come together perfectly for a staged execution to go off without a hitch after all. As that thought crossed his mind, Caleb’s appreciation for the murders grew. In a way, with the latest murder, the killer had set things in motion and each little gear along the way spun without question and without second guessing. A small smile found its way to Caleb’s face at the idea that the killer, in a very round about way, might have essentially handed Sir William his own proverbial noose to hang himself with, albeit using a different method of execution.  
  
The process was what really intrigued Caleb, the photos of the crime scenes were just evidence of what had taken place. It was only with Sir William’s murder that Caleb had a chance to see the process happen in real time. The question now was how did it all play out behind the scenes.  
  
For a long while, Will and Caleb listened as Abigail explained things from her point of view. Caleb wrong in his notebook, making note of specific aspects and adding his own thoughts in the margins. Will nodded at times, continuing to be the sympathetic ear as Caleb’s recorder picked up the entirety of Abigail’s account of events.  
  


_“With sketchy as everything is nowadays, you would think a girl would have the common sense to be suspicious of a mask man coming out of nowhere giving any kind of order. _

  
Will and Caleb shared a look. There was no doubt in their mind, based on everything they knew so far and everything they had speculated on, that the masked man had to have been The Midnight Killer. Now it was a not-so-simple matter of proving the existence of the masked man beyond only witness testimony. Well, that and discovering his identity. _Someone _had to have taken notice of the man at some point over the course of the night. In the throngs of people attending the event, someone had to have known someone fitting the description or at least wearing that specific type of mask. The hard part, was getting close enough to interview those who might know more.  
  


_“It wasn’t even a masked ball, it was Nineteenth-century decadence! Masquerades were _Fifteenth_-century! I can’t… I just can’t...”_

  
“Can you believe that, Will?” Caleb asked, glancing at his co-host with a neutral expression, but the look in his eye told Will enough. “The culprit couldn’t even get the theme of the event right.”  
  
“The killer should have stuck out in a crowd then,” Will commented, frowning. “At least, in a crowd if people were aware of an anachronism like that.”  
  
“If anyone knew who he was, the police would have already tracked him down,” Caleb added. “I have to wonder if the cameras picked up anything useful that’s being overlooked.”  
  
“Right...” Will sighed, knowing that may be yet another dead end in the investigation. “Abigail, would you happen to have a list of people who were involved in selecting the theme for the event? I’m asking because we don’t think the killer is necessarily an enemy of Sir William’s.”  
  
“Pretty sure he’s someone Sir William might have trusted,” Caleb continued. “Well, trusted _enough_ to not be suspicious of.”

* * *

“You would think that” Abigail responded, crossing her arms in front of herself indignantly. “I’ve been telling the police the exact same thing. Investigate the attendees” She scoffed. “If they actually were investigating them however, then I haven’t heard word of it. They’d rather keep bringing me in week after week, yelling and giving threats as if my story is going to change” She then shook her head. “That said… I doubt any of the guests would actually remember. I doubt either of the two of you have been to any of these events, but it’s largely composed of networking, photoshoots, and selfies. No one there is actually paying attention to one another, it’s all status. Combine that with the trauma of watching a beheading live… I’d be surprised if any of them actually remembered what the hell they were even wearing that evening”  
  
  
She sighed, bringing a hand upward to brush away an awkward strand of hair that fell in front of her gaze. “There were cameras at the venue. None live during the event” She next stated. “And before you start pointing fingers that wasn’t my doing. I wanted them rolling, however my decision was overruled by the board. Apparently there were some attendees who took issue with being recorded without explicit approval” She shrugged her shoulders helplessly. “I don’t fully remember the reasoning. Something to do with access rights, and likenesses” She paused. “I think the primary reason was that ABC Entertainment demanding exclusive streaming rights to the event. A bullshit excuse, but there you go”  
  
  
Another pause.  
  
  
  
“I’ve been pondering over all of this myself. The only way I could see this being investigated is for someone to start going through people’s instagram pages. Maybe someone just happened to take a selfie in decent view of the culprit. It sounds like something the police would be doing, but considering that there hasn’t been any new developments then maybe that too has led to a dead end” She said, sighing to herself as she then listened to the two.  
  
  
  
“Hm” She answered when asked about the theme selection. “There was a planning committee about a month or two ago. Sir William personally invited a bunch of creative minds and thinkers to come up with the year’s theming. I’ve no list of names however, I was instructed to burn any mention of the committee and its attendees per Sir William’s orders. He wished for full credit for the event, and paper trails would have been troublesome if anyone had the bright idea to sue” She said. “I barely even remember the meeting myself. There were hours of rejections and more rejections, then someone had brought up to pass a notepad around and write whatever was the first to come to mind. I….” Her brows furrowed as she tried to remember. “...I remember there was something odd that happened during that whole process though…. Someone had written down the guillotine idea. However when everything was read aloud everyone was suddenly convinced that Sir William had come up with the idea. That couldn’t have been possible, I was looking over his shoulder and he wrote down something along of the lines of embarrassing twitter users. He always did, his war against his social media ‘bullies’ was his thing. Of course, I didn’t say anything. The man was going to take credit for things in the end anyway…”  
  
  
  
Her eyes widened. Surprise, realization… fear. “Wait. You… you don’t think that he… he was in that room… right?” She stammered, then exhaled slowly to try and calm down herself down a bit. “I mean, that couldn’t be realistic. Whoever did this could have just come in later and hijacked the theme to fit what he was planning. Right?” She asked, hoping that one of them would agree with that interpretation instead. It didn’t sit well with her that she might have potentially shared a room with the killer of her boss.

* * *

_“I’d be surprised if any of them actually remembered what the hell they were even wearing that evening”_

  
Will listened and nodded, processing the new information while Caleb wrote it all down. The audio recorder continued to roll all the while. Witnesses, or at least the attendee witnesses, were out as an option. Perhaps if they had a chance to talk to the stage manager or the other staff they might get a bit more, but both Will and Caleb had a feeling those who were working were too preoccupied to worry about a lone masked man backstage.  
  


_“A bullshit excuse, but there you go”_

  
Will cringed and Caleb left a particularly ugly blot of ink on his notes at this revelation. No cameras meant no possible chance there was footage showing the Midnight Killer behind the scenes in action. It also meant they’d be unable to get a more detailed description of the killer beyond a man in an anachronistic mask.  
  


_“It sounds like something the police would be doing, but considering that there hasn’t been any new developments then maybe that too has led to a dead end” _

  
Both Will and Caleb shared a look. It was worth a shot to browse images taken from the event on Instagram, but the hours necessary to comb through all of that on the off chance the Midnight Killer was standing in the background was a bit much for two college students with a full schedule. Even then, beyond ‘man in a mask’ they weren’t sure what to look for and there was always the off chance more than one attendee wore a mask.  
  


_“I mean, that couldn’t be realistic. Whoever did this could have just come in later and hijacked the theme to fit what he was planning. Right?”_

  
Caleb wanted nothing more than to say ‘yes, that’s exactly what we think,’ but he had already promised Will he’d do his best to avoid freaking Abigail out. Right now though, it looked like she was doing what she could to remain calm despite realizing she very well could have been in the same room as the Midnight Killer at some point. Giving a side long glance to Will, Caleb had a questioning look on his face.  
  
“It’s one possibility,” Will said evenly, “unlike the police, we’re trying to examine all angles, not just the obvious ones.”  
  
Knowing what they knew, or rather knowing that there was _speculation _among their followers and subscribers, it was hard to come to the conclusion that the theme was somehow hijacked after the fact. If they were correct in the assumption that Caleb’s comment during the Greene’s invesitgation about a guillotine inspired Sir William’s manner of death, then it made sense the killer would have to arrange a beheading. It wasn’t _impossible _to say that the Midnight Killer saw and took an opportunity with an already prearranged beheading scene, but what were the odds of that? Regardless, Caleb added the note that while the killer had to have been an attendee, there was a slim chance that he was simply in the right place at the right time to hijack a beheading.  
  
Still, a committee of artistic minds and creative thinkers...  
  


Caleb was _sure _that the killer was a well-known artist.  


The Midnight Killer _had _to have been in that room.  


“The Midnight Killer could have used someone else as a proxy,” Caleb said, earning an unsure look from Will. “I mean, he very easily could have talked someone else into presenting the guillotine idea, which is why we need to know who was in that room.”  
  
“Right, because that leaves a loose end,” Will concluded, running with the idea Caleb was presenting, regardless of his own doubts. “Whoever planted the idea could be in danger.”  
  
“If the proxy is smart, they might have already skipped town,” Caleb started. He didn’t truely believe in the new idea he was presenting, but he needed a list of names and if convincing Abigail those people were in danger got him the names, what did it matter if he was deceptive? “I doubt they’ve gone to the police, maybe they’re afraid of being pegged as the killer themselves. I mean, you’ve seen how the police treat people who might know anything about this case.”

* * *

“A… proxy?” The woman asked after she took in yet another slow breath. It sounded plausible. A stand-in, or just an innocent friend of the killer. Or maybe it meant that there were multiple people behind the entire beheading - that didn’t sit too well with her. Neither did the fact that she was likely one of the few people who had knowledge of that meeting or the full list of its attendees.  
  
  
“I… I don’t know…” She then said fidgeting a bit, her previously calm and business-like facade fading fast as panic started to creep up. She tried to remember - the group was all vaguely-blurred faces in her memories now, with no names to match either. However, one in particular came to mind. She immediately looked up, realization flashing in her eyes. She opened her mouth…  
  
  
  
...and nothing came out.  
  
  
  
Her brow furrowed, then she shook her head. Her gaze fell solemnly back down to the table. “No, nothing comes to mind” She lied. “But I have records, notes. I might still have something from that week. Either a stray name or something to jog my memory. Give me some time and I might be able to point you to someone” She said, looking back up at the two. “They might know something as well. I’m thinking if we can at least get some of the group together we might be able to give our recollection of what happened, maybe that will finally shed some light on all of this”

* * *

_“I… I don’t know…” _

  
Both Will and Caleb waited, hopefully, curiously, maybe even with some degree of excitement on Caleb’s part. They hadn’t anticipated ever getting this close to an actual lead and to have another one a breath away was more than they could have ever hoped for in an active case. Unfortunately, they both visibly deflated when the revelation they were hoping for never came.  
  


_“Give me some time and I might be able to point you to someone” _

  
Not having names of people who might be the killer, or who might know more, was somewhat of a let down for both Will and Caleb. Still, it wasn’t a complete dead end and if there were still any existing records that might be useful around _somewhere_, it was better than nothing. They had also discovered a bit more about the case, the masked man, for instance as well as the fact that no amount of digging would reveal video footage of the murder being set up backstage.  
  


_“I’m thinking if we can at least get some of the group together we might be able to give our recollection of what happened, maybe that will finally shed some light on all of this”_

  
“Okay, that’d be great,” Will said before Caleb could so much as open his mouth. “We can give you our numbers if you need to reach us later?” He continued, just as Caleb started writing them out in neat, blocked digits in his notebook.  
  
“Here they are,” Caleb commented as he tore out the bottom half of the page, both numbers listed with their names beside each. “It’d also be a good idea to maybe warn anyone you think might be in danger,” he added while sliding the bit of paper across the table to Abigail. “The killer is going to be someone they’ll trust, they might not even realize they’re in danger until it’s too late.”

* * *

Abigail just nodded quietly and watched as Caleb quickly jotted down a pair of numbers then handed them over. She took the slip of paper without question then looked down at the numbers carefully, studiously as if committing them to memory. “It will be a few days at most, hopefully” She said before she took out her phone and worked on adding the pair of numbers to her list of contacts.  
  
Her tapping however would cease after hearing Caleb speak about the killer - particularly that they were potentially someone to be trusted. Hearing that, she looked up slowly from her phone to the pair and eyed them with an odd expression. “What makes you think that?” The words came out a bit slower, a bit off-kilter. “Am I in danger as well…?”

* * *

_“It will be a few days at most, hopefully”_

  
Will nodded, glad that it was only a few days and not a few weeks or months. Then again, neither of them knew when the killer would strike and there was no pattern to go off of that had been discerned over the last year. Right now though, with the irregularity that had been a live, televised murder, it was reasonable to guess that the killer might want to eliminate all evidence linking him to the event.  
  


_“What makes you think that?” _

  
“...We think the killer has a tendency to befriend potential victims prior to killing them,” Will said, carefully, knowing Jayden had explicitly told them she had PTSD from all of this. “That or he’s charismatic, enough that people let their guard down.”  
  


_“Am I in danger as well…?”_

  
Will and Caleb shared a look. They thought the answer was fairly obvious, that anyone in the city or within reasonable driving distance was in danger. There was also the added fact that, by their own logic, Abigail was a loose end for the killer as well.  
  
“Everyone’s in danger until the killer is caught,” Caleb said finally, “thankfully, we’re pretty sure the killer is one man.”  
  
“We’re not trying to scare you,” Will added quickly, “but it’d be best to take precautions.”  
  
“I’m guessing the police don’t want you to leave town?” Caleb asked suddenly, “If I were you I’d hop on a flight out of town until this all blows over.”

* * *

“No… I haven’t thought to leave town, no” She said quietly, not sounding as if she was fully there anymore. She shook her head against then started looking down at the table intently, trying to make sense of everything.  
  
  
Taking everything into consideration, it sounded as if Jayden was the one to be suspicious of here. He was the only face she could recall from the theming committee, the only member of it that she had been in touch with. The man had been nothing but charming and friendly. At the same time however, since this whole thing had started he’d been nothing but helpful as well. He had given her advice, recommended lawyers, showed her how to navigate the business with the police. It simultaneously made perfect sense and no sense whatsoever.  
  
  
Her gaze widened she noticed a drop of sweat slowly hit the spot on the table in front of her. She blinked a bit, then brought a pair of shaky fingers to her neck and realized that her pulse was currently racing.  
  
  
“I… I have to go…” Abigail said suddenly, abruptly standing up with enough force that her chair nearly toppled backward. “I need to be alone.. I’ll call tomorrow, please just pick up..”

* * *

_“No… I haven’t thought to leave town, no” _

  
Once more, a look was shared between Will and Caleb, neither of them sure what to do at this point. They didn’t want to make things _worse _by saying or doing the wrong thing. For the moment, they both elected to sit and wait for Abigail to say or do something. As seconds ticked by, Will looked increasingly concerned, while Caleb had started to look disinterested. It was when Abigail checked her own pulse that Will opened his mouth to possibly say something.  
  


_“I… I have to go…”_

  
Before Will could voice his concern, Abigail stood and that seemed to snap Caleb back to attention as well. Closing his notebook and turning his audio recorder off, he placed both items and his pen back into his bag. It seemed that the interview was over and while they had gotten a few answers, they didn’t feel that much closer to the identity of the killer.  
  


_“I need to be alone.. I’ll call tomorrow, please just pick up..”_

  
“O-okay we can do that,” Will said, scooting his chair back and rising around the same time as Caleb stood and slung his backpack over one shoulder. “I guess if you need anything go ahead and call whenever.”  
  
“Night or day, one of us will pick up,” Caleb added, hoping it was reassuring.

* * *

“Tomorrow” The woman repeated, nearly glaring at the duo at that point, then quickly turned and made her exit.  
  
  
As she took back to the streets, the only thing that was on her mind was getting back to her suite and locking everything up tightly. She wasn’t sure what to believe anymore, however she cursed herself for being so naive as to believe that being under investigation by the police made her suddenly immune to being targeted by a rampaging serial killer.  
  
She didn’t truly feel safe until she was back inside the lobby of her condominium, and even then she couldn’t stop the anxiety that she felt as she was left stuck and waiting on the elevator to take her back to her floor. Nothing made sense anymore, nothing felt safe, and all she wanted was a pair of locked doors separating her from the rest of the world to give her time to process things. She needed to draft a document of her thoughts, something to try and help her organize all the conflicting ideas that were now rummaging through her head. After she would send that out to everyone she could think of, and then she’d catch the first plane out and go back to her father’s to lie low.  
  
It was a good plan, she thought to herself as she made her way out of the elevator and nearly sprinted to the door to her condo. Shaky hands fumbled with her keys a bit, taking a bit of work to unlock things before she finally got it open then slammed the door back behind her and locked it tight. She leaned against the wall then slowly sunk down onto the floor, then wrapped her arms around her knees. “...I can’t live like this anymore…” She whispered to herself repeatedly, shaking her head back and forth as she rocked a bit, trying to keep calm and remind herself that she would be gone from the city by the end of the week at best. It would look shady to the police, they would likely come after her, but at that point she didn’t care anymore.  
  
“You’re back early…” She heard a deep, familiar voice. It used to give her comfort, peace, but hearing it now caused her to freeze completely. “...cute aren’t they...?” The voice continued. “...you should have stayed with them longer, however. I haven't yet finished setting up things here”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	7. Abigail Walters II

_“Tomorrow” _

After Abigail left, Will and Caleb weren’t entirely sure what to do. They hadn’t expected the interview to end this early, nor did they anticipate Abigail leaving this worked up. A good few moments passed before either of them said or did anything. Will felt guilty over how things had gone, though the guilt was more due to a feeling of helplessness that bordered on uselessness. Caleb, meanwhile, was frustrated and wondering what to do if Abigail didn’t bother contacting them.

“We’ve got a group study session in a little over an hour,” Will said finally, starting off towards the exit of the library, urging Caleb to follow along.

“This is unbearable,” Caleb said, an edge to his tone that wasn’t usually there. “It’s almost like the universe doesn’t want the Midnight Killer to be caught.”

“Well, there’s nothing we can do now,” Will responded, neutrally as they made their way to his battered old jeep. “Abigail should contact us tomorrow and we’ll see where we can go from there.”

“...Are you going to text Jayden?” Caleb asked suddenly, slipping into the passenger seat and buckling up.

“What for?” Answering a question with a question, Will turned the engine on and started driving towards the university’s student union building. “Why don’t you text him for a change?” He asked, unable to keep the humor out of his voice. “If you want his number all you had to do was ask.”

“No I mean about Abigail,” huffing, Caleb could feel the red rising in his cheeks. “She seemed pretty freaked out and he did warn us about the PTSD and everything.”

“I don’t think it could he helped,” shrugging, Will didn’t have more to say on the matter. “I guess I’ll let him know how things went later, or maybe tomorrow.”

“Right, don’t want to sound too eager,” arriving at the student union, Caleb unbuckled and shifted his bag around in his lap. “I think I’m going to do some editing so we can play this in a stream tonight.”

“Tonight?” Will asked, alarm clear in his voice.

“Just a quick one,” Caleb said defensively. “People were a little unhappy with how our last Q and A ended so soon and with all the new subscribers...”

“I guess we can get something together for tonight,” begrudgingly, Will agreed as they headed inside to meet up with their group of friends.

~~~

'Hey, just wanted to let you know the interview with Abigail ended a little early and she seemed pretty upset.' 

Will read over the text before adding another line and then hitting send. 

'We're going ahead with a stream about the interview in an hour.' 

~~~  
  
“Hello and welcome back,” Caleb greeted the camera as the stream started. “Since our last stream ended a little early and since everyone’s been asking for more content, we’ve gone ahead and put together something I hope everyone will find compelling.”

“Don’t worry, there’s no dead bodies in this one,” Will assured the audience as the chat came to live with speculation. “So, to answer the questions in chat, we managed to get an interview with Sir William’s assistant.” A click of the controller and an image of Abigail appeared in the corner of the stream. “Recently she’s been subjected to harassment and accusations from a lot of different people, so we figured we’d get her take on what happened with Sir William’s murder.”

“That and we wanted to see if she knew anything,” Caleb added. “For the record, I don’t think her or the stage manager had any direct involvement in the murder, but...I guess I should let the audio do the talking and we can answer questions about the interview after.”

With that, Will went ahead and hit a few buttons and the audio recording of the interview started to play. Will sat back, monitoring the chat despite what happened last time. Caleb, meanwhile, was blanking staring off into the camera, listening to the sounds of his own voice as well as Will and Abigail’s. As the audio played, the chat was still abuzz with questions, thoughts, opinions, and a barrage of other nonsensical things.

* * *

Back at the condo, Jayden never gave Abigail any time to react. He knelt down to her level and captured her neck into a powerful grip, holding her head against against the wall and forcing her to look back up at him. His other hand quickly reached inside of the pocket of his suit jacket, taking out a handkerchief that he quickly stuffed inside of her mouth the moment she made an attempt to scream. He then shifted a bit, letting go of her neck. He kept one hand on her mouth to keep her quiet, then reached back into his suit jacket and took out a small syringe.  
  
“Shhh” He said calmly. The grip around her mouth became tighter as he forced her head sideways, then quickly pierced her neck with syringe. The entire time his eyes were blank, expressionless as he watched, seemingly immune to the woman’s muffled sobbing as he drugged her.  
  
From there it was just waiting. One minute, five, then a half an hour. Eventually her sobbing stopped, so too did her struggles as her body became more lax. Her gaze was blurry and unfocused as she looked up and him, and he just smiled back in return. He reached back inside his pocket and took out a second handkerchief and just calmly wiped away the tears that dotted her eyes and graced the side of her cheeks. “Naughty girl you are, trying to get a peek of things before its fully ready” He shook his head, frowning just a bit. “I must apologize though. You won’t be another Sir William, you’re just a message that needs to be sent out. But” He paused. “I’m really not as heartless as the media makes me out to be. You will still be given the same care that I’ve given to all of the others. Life is a gift, truly it is, and know that yours will not be discarded carelessly”  
  
That said, he slowly pulled away then carefully picked up her into her arms and made his way over to the nearby couch then laid her down to rest. It was around that time he felt a buzz from his phone. As if oblivious to what had happened over the past half-hour, he carefully took it out and started glancing through his missed texts. He raised a brow when he got one from Will.  
  
“You two work fast” He said idly to himself, then started walking around the living room as he thought over a proper response.  
  
‘Late networking lunch. Will catch the replay later’ He texted back, then paused a bit as he wondered whether or not he ought to add something else. ‘Promise 🙂'  
  
That done he pocketed his phone again, then settled down onto the other side of the couch. He reached for the remote and started fiddling with the menu options until he figured out how to get it to connect to the internet. Then it was a matter of finding Caleb and Will’s stream. After seeing the two bright, young faces he smiled, and started to listen in.  
  
When the audio recording finished he just raised a brow and glanced over at Abigail. “You figured it out and didn’t fucking tell them?” He said, grinning, not expecting a response from her in that state. “Oh… that must be why you came back here in such a hurry…. You weren’t sure what to believe” He then just scoffed and shook his head slowly. “Terrible situation to be in, isn’t it? Not knowing who you can trust... I’m glad that, in the end, you chose to believe me though. Really I am” He said, giving her a gentle pat at the side and stood back up to continue his work cleaning and organizing the room.

* * *

‘Promise 🙂'  


‘Ttyl 💜✌’ Will typed back with some degree of uncertainty before clicking the send button, hoping the heart emoji wasn’t offputting.

  
For the most part, the day had been a productive one. They had their interview and while there were bumps, it made for good content and they did learn a few small details. As for studying, their friend group was a little dismayed but understanding about them stopping in for a short amount of time before taking off to edit and stream. Besides, they had reasoned, this project on the Midnight Killer _was _basically school work for their senior thesis seminar. Finally, they had managed to get a new video out and anyone who had been let down by their sudden and unexpected ending last time had that to look forward to at least.  
  
“Well, that went better than I expected,” Will commented after the stream. “No weird comments or questions.”  
  
“And people seemed genuinely interested in this one,” Caleb added, glad to know the idea didn’t flop. “Like, they’re actually interested in the case and not just _us_.”  
  
“Do you think Abigail is okay?” Unable to not worry just a little, Will seemed bothered. “I almost want to text her to make sure she’s alright, but...she seemed adamant about not contacting us until tomorrow.”  
  
“What’s her number again?” Caleb asked, a sigh of exasperation to his voice. “I’ll call her then, if she picks up and yells at me then whatever.”  
  
“Here it is,” digging his own phone out, Will shared the information Jayden had given him the other day.  
  
“Great, I’ll go ahead and call then,” with his own phone in hand, Caleb dialed the number and waited, half expecting to be blown off entirely. “If she doesn’t answer it might be just because she doesn’t want to talk.”

* * *

Jayden took a brief break when he felt his phone buzz again, then went back to the couch and sunk down onto the opposite side of Abigail. He flipped through his more recent messages and focused specifically on the one from Will. He eyed with with a smile, then raised a brow. “He sent me a heart, what do you think that means?” He said, looking back over at Abigail who just groaned lightly in response. “Could be that he’s into me… could be that’s he’s just being friendly… could be that he wants to be more friendly?” He looked a bit closer at the screen. “Could be a mistake” He frowned, then glanced back over at Abigail as if finally expecting a response. Eventually he just let out a huff and stashed the phone back within the inner-pocket of his jacket.  
  
  
-  
  
  
The man would continue about his business as the stream played in the background, then after it had finished he took a brief break to put on loop. He also made a point to bound the woman’s hands and legs together and kept his mouth gagged for whenever her senses decided to return to her.  
  
Eventually he had to pause when he heard a buzzing. He glanced at Abigail first, who was more or less awake by that point (albeit still a bit groggy) and just stared back at him with the same panicked-strikened eyes. He thought for a moment, then walked over and started ruffling through her pockets until he came across her cell phone.  
  
“Hm” He moved over to the kitchen and grabbed a knife, then moved back to her. He placed the knife to her neck and then the cellphone in front of one of her hands.  
  
“Unlock it” He said coldly. She looked at him, hyperventilating through the gag, then the phone, then back back up and him and started wiggling her wrists as if to slow that she couldn’t. Jayden however just shook his head and pressed the knife even closer. “Unball your hand and use your finger, you have enough space to do that much”  
  
She started to wail weakly through the gag and she slowly moved as best she could to uncurl her finger and started pressing the digits to her phone. All the while Jayden watched carefully, both to know the code for himself for later and to double-check that she didn’t pull anything like press the ‘emergency call’ button.  
  
After she surprisingly did what was asked without issue, he took the phone for himself and knew almost immediately the number that was calling. “You expecting them today?” He asked, turning his gaze back to Abigail who just started shaking her head back and forth in a panic. “Tomorrow?” He next asked to which she shook her head again. “Hm” He wondered, then shrugged and placed the phone off to the side.  
  
“That's unfortunate” He said, flashing a wide smile. “They’ll be here tomorrow, regardless”

* * *

“She didn’t answer,” Caleb said as he ended the call just as it went to voicemail. “She might just not want to talk or she could be busy,” he offered as a form of reassurance to Will who still didn’t look reassured.  
  
“What if she does something rash?” Will asked, his worries not just limited to the Midnight Killer going after her.  
  
“Honestly?” Looking less concerned, Caleb shrugged. “It’s not our problem what she does at this point, we did warn her and it’s not as if the Midnight Killer is omnipresent. For all we know she’s taking my advice and skipping town.”  
  
“...I guess,” running a hand through his now mussed up hair, Will deflated. “Want anything specific for dinner? We probably shouldn’t keep ordering out just because we can afford to at the moment.”  
  
“If the Midnight Killer wants to keep throwing money at us, who are we to reject it?” Caleb was grinning and Will continued to look unimpressed. “We can figure dinner out upstairs,” he amended a moment later.  
  
Eventually, the pair of them would head upstairs and put all thoughts of Abigail, Jayden, and the Midnight Killer aside. After some debate, dinner was haphazardly made and the evening carried out in a borderline domestic fashion before both Will and Caleb took some time to get some studying done as well as work on a few additional projects for their respective channels. It was late into the evening when they both decided to retire to bed.  
  
“What if something’s wrong though?” Will asked from his side of the room, peering through the dark over at Caleb’s bed.  
  
“Then we’ll deal with it later,” Caleb murmured groggily. “We’ll give Abigail a call in the morning, I promise.”

* * *

That evening would be just as uneventful, communications-wise anyway. Abigail seemed to have gone radio silent following the interview. Jayden however, was far more busy. Not with dealing with Abigail, but trying to figure out how he was supposed to respond back to Will. Later on in the evening, when the sun had finally begun to set he settled back against one of the walls and pulled his phone back out.  
  
‘Just saw it. Not a lot of info to go by but seems like a start. I’ll ask around in my own circles as well, might know someone who went to that themeing committee’  
  
A brief pause.  
  
‘Looked good, btw. Wanna do coffee again, my place? Sometime this week’  
  
‘No pressure. _Actual_ coffee btw 😉’  
  
  
  
-  
  
  
The following day Abigail still wouldn’t pick up any calls, or send out any communication whatsoever. That however would change when Caleb would receive a sudden text from her number sometime in the evening.  
  
‘I think I know who it is’  
  
Came the first text, followed by another with the address of her condo and her room number.  
  
‘Meet me here quickly. I’ve created a dossier of events leading up to the themeing committee as well as the gala. Do with it what you will, I’ll be taking a bus out of town around 9’  
  
Another pause.  
  
’Please hurry...’

* * *

_‘I’ll ask around in my own circles as well, might know someone who went to that theming committee’_

At some point, Will had checked his messages to find a response from Jayden. He bit his lip as he read it over, knowing that as interesting as the interview was, it didn’t have enough information to work with beyond speculation. Caleb had been frustrated after the interview and Will couldn’t blame him. Still, if Jayden was willing to help they at least had the benefit of knowing someone who know people who might have been involved.

Frowning, Will eyed his phone. Not because of the messages about coffee, but rather because he found it interesting that Jayden Mattis of all the artists in the city, hadn’t been on the theming committee. It was a thought that nagged him a little, but he had no reason to believe Abigail would deliberately withhold that sort of information. Besides, Jayden had arranged their meeting.

_‘Looked good, btw. Wanna do coffee again, my place? Sometime this week’_

The message about coffee did still leave Will unsure. The last time he’d allowed himself to be in such a vulnerable position had ended badly for him. For a long moment, he almost wanted to insist on a public venue. He almost wanted to insist on bringing Caleb, but all the blond seemed to care about was the Midnight Killer.

_‘No pressure. Actual coffee btw 😉’_

‘I’ll think about it,’ he texted back, ‘finals are coming up, so it’s going to get busy in the next few weeks,’ he added to avoid making Jayden think he was turning him down.

~~~

In the morning, afternoon, and early evening Caleb had made an attempt at reaching Abigail. It was mostly for Will’s sake, as Caleb was fine with letting her have her space while she figured out who was at the committee. Finally, that evening, he got a response.

_‘I think I know who it is’_

Looking at his phone, Caleb’s eyebrows shot up and he felt his heart skip a beat. A wide grin spread across his face as he read the message. He had, admittedly, been expecting a longer chase, but to have a possible suspect this close was like finding out final exams had been canceled.

_‘Do with it what you will, I’ll be taking a bus out of town around 9’_  


“Will!” Caleb called from the living room into the kitchen where Will was working at the counter. “Abigail texted,” he said, getting up and practically tripping over himself to get his coat and shoes on. “She wants us to meet her at her condo,” he added, fumbling after his bag. “She thinks she knows who it is!”

_’Please hurry...’_

Heeding Abigail’s last text, Caleb had the door open and waited only for Will to likewise get his coat, shoes, and keys. Once Will was at the door, Caleb bounded down the stairs and all but threw himself at the jeep as he skidded across the ice that had formed seemingly overnight on the walkway.

“She said to hurry,” Caleb said as Will opened the car and they got inside. “You going to call Jayden?” He asked, earning an eye roll from Will.

“I’ll give you his number and you can call him since you want to talk to him so badly,” Will quipped and after some back and forth banter, Caleb was adding Jayden as a new contact.

‘Hey, it’s Caleb,’ Caleb texted while Will drove them to the address provided from Abigail’s texts. ‘Abigail texted and I guess she thinks she knows who the Midnight Killer is,” he continued in a new line of text. ‘Will and I are on the way over to her place.’ Pausing, he couldn’t help but the next thing he texted. ‘Here’s to hoping the Midnight Killer isn’t waiting to murder us.😛 ’

* * *

‘Sounds like a ‘yes’ for after finals then’  
  
Jayden responded to Will the following day.  
  
‘Joking… Joking… Business-only, smart way to live’  
  
Later on after Caleb texted him, he texted back.  
  
‘Don’t joke about something that can be true’  
  
‘You sure though?’  
  
‘I watched your interview, she looked extremely flustered. Sounds like a red herring…’  
  
-  
  
By the time the duo would show up at the condo lobby everything looked to be in order. There were a couple of people chatting, others waiting in the nearby chairs for one reason or another. The place was certainly fancy, but not fancy enough to require security running around or door men who were charged with flagging down any undesirables from entering the building. As such the duo wouldn’t have any problem at all inviting themselves inside, or accessing the elevators to head upstairs.  
  
When they arrived at her door, no amount of knocking would be answered. However, the door itself was actually open. A brief couple of taps would cause it to creak inwardly to allow them inside.  
  
Inside however, the place was absolutely spotless. Everything was impeccably organized and cleaned up. The lights were slightly dimmed, providing a sort of special ambiance, and a pair of candles that were burning in the kitchen provided a nice, subtle scent of vanilla that gently floated through the air. The television in the living area, in perfect view from the doorway, was tuned in to a video of a fireplace, the soft cackling of the flames softly echoing throughout the entirety of the room.  
  
By the look of everything it was like stepping onto a stage set.. Everything just looked too perfect, too warm and just too inviting that it came off as fake and unauthentic.  
  
Deeper in the living room Abigail was curled up against the sofa, a lone blanket draped against her. The color was still in her skin, and the expression that was across her face made her look as if she was legitimately sleeping. If anything, her being there added even further to the vibe of coziness the room was giving at that moment.  
  
Despite how comfortable and relaxed she looked however, she wasn’t breathing. Furthermore, on the glass table in front of her there was a lone book labeled ‘Autographs’ with a bookmark hanging out of one particular page.

* * *

_‘Joking… Joking… Business-only, smart way to live’_

  
‘Caleb and I should have plenty of time during winter break,’ Will texted back eventually. ‘next semester should be more mellow unless the Midnight Killer decides to keep us busy.’  
  


_‘I watched your interview, she looked extremely flustered. Sounds like a red herring…’_

  
‘Imo, the Midnight Killer already made his interest clear,’ Caleb replied en route to Abigail’s. ‘Idk if Abigail has anything or if it’s nothing, but if she happened to remember or found something this might be another lead.’  
  


~~~

  
Once Will found a space to park, Caleb was already out of the jeep and speed walking towards the doors to the building’s lobby. Will followed at a more reasonable pace, careful of the ice and even more careful to wipe his feet off prior to trekking through the lobby. Thankfully, they weren’t stopped and for the most part no one seemed to be paying them any mind.  
  
After locating Abigail’s room number, they knocked, then waited, knocked again and even checked that they were at the correct room just around the time one of them knocked just enough to make the door creak open. The duo looked at one another, a look of perplexion with a hint of trepidation. Will had seen enough horror movies to know something was wrong and Caleb had enough sense to know someone as shaken up as Abigail wouldn’t have left the door open.  
  
Pressing on, as unwise as it may have been, Caleb pushed the door open and nodded towards Will to follow him inside. Slipping in, they stood there for a moment, simply surveying what they could from the entry as Will closed the door behind them. Nothing seemed outright _wrong _there was no sign of any sort of chaos or struggle, though neither of those things fit the Midnight Killer’s MO as far as Caleb could remember.  
  
Ever the bolder of the two, Caleb started walking deeper into the apartment, passing the kitchen and the two candles before arriving in the living room. The blond came to a stop in front of the TV displaying the crackling fireplace they had seen from the doorway, turned to the couch and froze as a look of surprise crossed his face.  
  
“Looks like daddy’s skipping out on date night,” Caleb quipped as looked from Abigail’s too still form and the open book in front of her.  
  
“Caleb?” Will whisper shouted, not wanting to alarm anyone or attract attention when he wasn’t sure they were supposed to be there. “What’s going on?”  
  
“Stay there, Will, you don’t want to see this,” Caleb called back, approaching the presumably dead body before pulling one of his gloves off to reach out and check her pulse. “We at least have an alibi,” he murmured, “oh, and the texts I guess.”  
  
“Caleb,” Will sounded less and less pleased, “tell me what’s going on.”  
  
“Abigail’s dead,” was the flat response. “Stay where you are unless you want to see her corpse,” Caleb stepped back, eyeing the autograph book before digging his phone from his pocket.  
  
‘Abigail’s dead,’ he texted, shooting that off to Jayden. ‘Not sure what to do, actually. Don’t call the cops, I want to look around first.’  
  
“Hmm,” eyeing his phone, Caleb went over to the messages he’d exchanged with ‘Abigail’ only minutes prior.  
  
‘Nice set up, not as nice as Sir William’s, but the sentiment is appreciated,’ he texted, then his attention returned to the autograph book. ‘I prefer to know who I’m giving my autograph to,’ he added before putting his phone away.  
  
“I’m going to have a look around, but first...” Trailing off, Caleb knelt down beside the autograph book and flipped it open to the bookmarked page.  
  
“Caleb,” Will called again, sounding on the verge of panicking, “what are you doing?! We need to leave and call the cops, not _poke around the crime scene._”

* * *

‘What?!’  
  
Jayden responded back mere moments after Caleb texted him.  
  
‘Where the hell are you? Get out of there and go somewhere public NOW’  
  
-  
  
Both of the other texts that were sent to ‘Abigail’ created a faint buzzing sound nearby, a sound that would direct them over to her desk in the corner where her cellphone was now set. Unfortunately, however it was once again locked.  
  
Opening the book revealed a small passage:  
  
  
**Artists’ Notes:**  
  
Sometimes I feel that the world needs a far more quieter composition. Something to remind us all that things really aren’t as bad or as stressful as they appear. A reprieve, if you will, nice and calming.  
  
Except, that isn’t the case here at all is it?  
  
Something this perfect is bound to have something amiss. Something here is wrong, something here is just… off. It draws the viewer closer in, urges them to figure out just what is creating that uncanny feeling in the back of their mind…. until they finally discover it.  
  
I think that discovery is ultimately what makes this piece.  
  
One might see a corpse and all of a sudden this perfect imagery is quickly transformed into a nightmarish work of art.  
  
Others however, might just see a slumbering woman. They breathe a sigh of relief. There never really was anything wrong here, just a cozy depiction of an exhausted soul.  
  
Personally, I see the slumbering woman. I wish I could ask others what they see here.  
  
  
**Personal Note:**  
  
Caleb, Will, I hope you receive this well. I’ve taken great joy in watching your little segments covering my work.  
  
I know exactly where you are right now, I know that you’re likely reading this at this very moment as well.  
  
If I wanted I could have scheduled a police call for this very moment. They would have arrived before you had the chance to properly leave, and you would be caught red-handed. This could have all been a trap to get you out of my hair.  
  
But I didn’t. Instead I leave this note. The police will not be arriving anytime soon. I won’t let them have you.  
  
I want the two of you for myself. And only myself.  
  
I want to see your tears… and watch your pain...  
  
I want to see the color of your blood and what a beautiful, deep red it is.  
  
I want to hear your moans and feel you tremble beneath me.  
  
I will have all of these things.  
  
This is not a matter of_ if_, but rather_ when_.  
  
-MK

* * *

_‘Get out of there and go somewhere public NOW’_

  
Caleb glanced at the texts Jayden sent and ignored the advice. It might have been safer to up and leave now, but that wouldn’t get him any closer to his goals. That and it just wasn’t in Caleb’s nature to run away.  
  
‘Chillax, dad,’ Caleb texted back.  
  


~~~

  
Despite his own feelings on the matter and Caleb’s warning, Will slowly followed until he stood closer to the desk than the couch. He was careful to avoid looking where Abigail’s body lay. Pictures of strangers were one thing, but Abigail had been alive and talking to them just yesterday. His gaze fell on the phone that had buzzed and he frowned.  
  
“The killer had to have just been here,” Caleb murmured as he read over the artist’s note in the book. “He was texting me from her phone,” he clarified. “Which means he may have our numbers now,” he added. “She hasn’t been dead long... I don’t...he doesn’t...make his victim’s suffer as far as I know.”  
  
As he read over the personal note, Caleb wasn’t sure which emotion he was feeling most strongly. Excitement, disappointment, and anger seemed to be warring against one another. Worst of all, he realized with some degree of annoyance, that he was afraid for Will’s sake.  
  
“We can’t trust text messages,” he said after a moment, glancing up from the book at Will. “We’re going to need to be careful, calling or FaceTiming to confirm we know who were talking to,” he continued. “He’s right, he could have set a trap and we would have walked right into it.”  
  
Caleb wasn’t afraid of walking into a trap himself. His fear was that he’d lead Will into one.  
  
Taking his phone out, Caleb started snapping pictures of the inside of the book, doing two separate images of both passages, the cover, he even tried to find a barcode or a price tag on the back to figure out where the book had been purchased. It was a long shot, one of so many. Then, he went ahead and carefully tore the bottom passage addressed to them out. The artist’s note he’d leave for the police.  
  
Done with the book, Caleb went around and took pictures of nearly everything else. He was careful to avoid getting Will in any of his shots. He also didn’t want to leave a single stone unturned. When else would he have a chance like this?  
  
Eventually, his attention fell on the body. He was curious, but he doubted Will would appreciate him manhandling the dead. Carefully, he leaned over and peered at Abigail’s face. A second later, he was moving her hair out of the way, checking for any indication of a struggle. Leaning in, he gave a sniff, wondering if she had drank anything or if it was administered another way.  
  
He knew prior victims had been drugged and with the building having other tenants he guessed Abigail had either been unconscious or incapable of screaming for help in the hours leading to her death.  
  
“Are you done?” Will asked, quiet, unsettled, and drained.  
  
“Yeah,” Caleb said whole standing and going about making sure to get rid of any sign they had been there.  
  
“We need to call this in,” Will started as they made their way to the door. “Anonymously, obviously.”

* * *

The body was still warm and as expected there wasn’t a sign of struggle. The only smell that could have been sensed was a light perfume, likely applied solely for the sake of the scene the killer had created there. On closer inspection, light pricks could be found on her neck from when she had been drugged, though they were fairly difficult to actually spot given their size and her lengthy hair getting in the way. All things considered it seemed likely she died some lethal injection of some sort. Quietly, peacefully.  
  
The rest of the room didn’t have anything else of note. In setting up everything, Jayden made sure to remove anything that might have been suspicious. He went through her paperwork, and removed the storage drives from her laptop, even gave her phone a factory-reset for good measure. Normally this was all extra work, but given that the entire scene required everything to be cleaned in the first place, it was just a matter of keeping an eye out for things here and there as went about tidying things up.  
  
‘Where are you?!’ Came another two texts from Jayden as the two continued glancing and looking about the crime scene.

* * *

Mentally, Caleb made notes of anything worth noting. He’d likely write it all down once they were home and then there was the matter of whether or not he should show Will the note the killer left for them. He knew that keeping Will ignorant would make him a danger to himself, but at the same time he knew it would trigger some pretty bad memories. Later on when they were home, safe, and Will was more at ease, then Caleb would probably bring it up.

‘Where are you?!’ 

‘Checking out the crime scene.’ Caleb texted back, just as they were getting ready to leave.

Will glanced at his phone, then at Caleb. With a sigh, he adjusted his settings to share his location with Jayden. If nothing else, at least someone would know their last location if the Midnight Killer ever did come after them. As it was, they had no reason to believe the killer wasn’t still nearby.

“We need to go,” Will said, opening the door and leading the way out, closing it once Caleb was back in the hallway. “Fuck, it’ll look bad if there’s cameras showing we were here.”

“I don’t see any in this hall,” Caleb said simply, “the lobby might have had one? Maybe? Honestly, I doubt the police are our main concerns right now.”

“What if he’s still around,” Will gestured around, as if half expecting the Midnight Killer to ambush them at any moment.

“That would make for a very boring game,” Caleb shrugged, “let’s go, we do need to call this in and then we need to do a stream once this goes public.”

With that, they both excited the building and headed to Will’s jeep, all the while Will couldn’t help but constantly look over his shoulder. Caleb, meanwhile, was poking at his phone again.

‘You should FaceTime us,’ he texted to Jayden, ‘need to know you’re actually you, since apparently the killer is cool with impersonating his victims over text.’

Getting into the jeep, Will turned on the engine and drove them away without any real direction. After what had happened, going directly home didn’t even feel safe and it was hard not to wonder if the killer was somehow able to track them. The last thing either of them wanted was to inform the killer where they lived.

* * *

By the time they left out of the building, both of their phones would buzz from a group text. Both of their numbers were listed, however the third was listed as ‘Private’.  
  
  
‘The police aren’t coming around anytime soon… you really should poke around longer… really take in the atmosphere I’ve set up for you…’  
  
‘All this waiting. And you two just come and go. Very anticlimactic’  
  
Around this time, there was a buzz for a Facetime request.  
  
‘Now I need something else to keep my attention... ‘  
  
‘Be good little boys and lock-up tight. Never know when the bad guys are going to sneak in and get you…’

* * *

_‘All this waiting. And you two just come and go. Very anticlimactic’_

  
Will had eventually chosen to take them to a nearby gas station to figure out what to do next. His phone buzzed, but he didn’t look at it yet. Caleb, meanwhile, was attentively reading the texts coming from a private number. He bit his lip, his brows furrowing as he tried to figure out how to respond, if to respond, or if they should do something else. It was hard to decide and while Caleb himself would have liked to dig around more, he doubted it was something he wanted to put Will through.  
  
The buzz for a FaceTime request caught Caleb’s attention around the same time Will started to read over the texts the had received. Without a second thought, Caleb accepted the request.  
  


_‘Be good little boys and lock-up tight. Never know when the bad guys are going to sneak in and get you…’_

  
“Do you want to go back?” Will asked Caleb, cringing at the thought of spending a moment longer in the same room as Abigail’s corpse. “We might have missed something... And...it’s not like anyone knows she’d dead yet, right?”

* * *

When the FaceTime was accepted, a very frazzled looking Jayden appeared on the screen. He was in a car himself, an uber most likely an apparently stuck in traffic. However, he had the camera angled in such a way that it was difficult to get a read of where he actually was.  
  
“What the hell is all of this about?” He said firmly, glaring back at them through the camera. “Where’s Abigail and what happened tonight?”  
  
As he was busy speaking and looking worried at the first phone, held with his left hand, a burner phone sat at his side, which was held in his right. The second one he was slowly tapping away at, doing his best to use his muscle memory to create a coherent message.  
  
Another text was then sent out to the group chat.  
  
‘Locking up won’t help you though. It didn't help the others’

* * *

_“Where’s Abigail and what happened tonight?”_

  
“Oh good, it’s actually you,” Caleb was filling up most of the screen, but angled it so Will was in frame from the side as well. “I would have hated to have stumbled across your body too...”  
  
“Abigail is dead,” Will said, voice soft and almost monotone.  
  
“And I’m pretty sure we have confirmation that the Midnight Killer has a boner for the both of us,” Caleb continued, earning a grimace from Will at the phrasing. “He left a message, it was creepy, I haven’t show Will it yet because I’m not actually a deranged sociopath.”  
  
“Jesus H. Christ, did he kill her just to give us a creepy message?” Will asked, for a moment feeling more animated. “What did it say?” He asked, unsure himself if he was ready to read it.  
  
“Same creepiness he’s sending us over text basically,” the blond said, waving a hand almost dismissively. “I’ll show you when we’re home and things have calmed down.”  
  


_‘Locking up won’t help you though. It didn't help the others’_

  
“But in all seriousness, he is texting us now,” Will said, addressing Jayden. “And we’re thinking we might have missed something in the apartment...or it might be a trap to lure us back.”  
  
“If we missed something...it could be important,” Caleb reasoned, “but the question is is it safe to go back? Like, I don’t need permission or anything, but I’m wondering if a different set of eyes might help.”

* * *

Hearing their response, Jayden cursed beneath his breath then ran a hand downward across his face. He glanced a bit warily up at the driver who thankfully didn’t hear the talk about a dead person, or at least didn’t appear to have noticed. Jayden lowered the volume a bit then cut the video feed so that he could bring the phone to his ear, hopefully to keep the conversation private.  
  
He signalled to the driver that he was fine being let off there, then quickly got out and took to the streets. “Shit… and now he’s after you two now? Why aren’t you at the police?” He stammered, then shook his head and abruptly changed the subject. “Fuck it, I knew I shouldn’t have set up that damned interview… fuck, fuck … FUCK….” He took in a deep breath.  
  
“Look… just… just... don’t text back alright? I’ll figure something out...” He said then promptly cursed again under his breath. “Where are you headed? Wherever it is it better not be back to the apartment”

* * *

_“Shit… and now he’s after you two now? Why aren’t you at the police?” _

  
“Why would we go to the police again?” Caleb inquired. “I’m pretty sure that’d have them on our asses accusing _us o_f being the Midnight Killer, which, honestly would be the funniest thing to me.”  
  


_“Fuck it, I knew I shouldn’t have set up that damned interview… fuck, fuck … FUCK….” _

  
“This has been going on since the end of the Greene’s case,” Will said after a moment. “After that Q and A is when I think we got that first huge donation.”  
  
“Which we blew on your birthday party,” Caleb quipped, finding a glimmer of light in an otherwise bleak predicament.  
  
“It was a good party,” Will admitted, briefly distracted.  
  


_“Look… just… just... don’t text back alright? I’ll figure something out...” _

  
“What if I send him a dick pic, you think that might scare him off?” Caleb was somewhat joking, not sure if he wanted to encourage the guy stalking them. “Oh, I know, we’ll flood him with memes, that’ll do it.”  
  
Will, meanwhile, snorted with laughter and shook his head in disbelief and amusement.  
  


_“Where are you headed? Wherever it is it better not be back to the apartment”_

  
“We don’t know yet,” Will said with a shrug.  
  
“...And what if we are heading back to the apartment?” Caleb asked, a challenging edge to his voice. “The police don’t know what they’re doing and if we overlooked something we won’t get another chance.”  
  
“Where do you think we should go?” Will, glanced over at the screen with Jayden’s face, unsure of what they should do.

* * *

“Because the last thing a pair of supposedly-innocent, wannabe detectives ought to be doing is heading back and forth to a crime scene!” Jayden said firmly, seemingly taking the whole situation far more seriously than the two on the other end. Eventually the man just paused and took in a deep breath to try and calm down just a bit himself.  
  
“Wait until the police get involved. Don’t draw any attention to yourself” He said. “You’re right, going to them yourselves isn’t the best idea… they’re all a bunch of bloodhounds at that point just itching to put the blame on someone and announcing case closed”  
  
He paused for a moment, thinking.  
  
“Just go home, alright? Keep safe, make sure you’re not being followed. Wait for all of this to be reported on the news. Investigating this isn’t your responsibility”

* * *

_“Because the last thing a pair of supposedly-innocent, wannabe detectives ought to be doing is heading back and forth to a crime scene!” _

  
Caleb bit his tongue, realizing that when it was phrased like that it made more sense for them to stay away from the crime scene. There was of course the concern that the killer himself was lurking around, but then there was also the fact that going back could put them at risk in the event that the police did show up. Will seemed to accept Jayden’s reasoning as a good enough reason to avoid heading back to the crime scene.  
  


_“You’re right,” ... ”…they’re all a bunch of bloodhounds at that point just itching to put the blame on someone and announcing case closed”_

  
“Right, having a homicidal maniac after us is bad enough,” Caleb started, leaning back into the seat as Will started the engine back up. “We don’t need Law and Order after us as well.”  
  


_“Just go home, alright?” ... “Investigating this isn’t your responsibility”_

  
“I wonder who the police will accuse this time, the neighbors?” Sighing, Caleb resigned himself to simply not knowing what else might have been in the apartment. “Maybe the building manager, or even the maintenance people at that.”  
  
“We’re heading home then,” Will said, in the background. “Not sure what to do about keeping safe when the Midnight Killer hasn’t been deterred by doors with locks before.”  
  
“We’ll be fine,” Caleb insisted, not sounding entirely sure himself.  
  
“Maybe it’s time we look into an actual security system then?” As they drove, Will took a few random turns, making sure no one followed them. “Since the Midnight Killer is giving us thousands of dollars, might as well look into it.”  
  
“I guess I can also share my location,” Caleb said, knowing that while Will and him were close, they weren’t joined at the hip. “That way you guys can find my body sooner rather than later.”

* * *

“Good” Jayden responded, when the two said that they would be returning home. Granted that wasn’t something he could actually confirm. He would then continue to listen as the two continued to discuss their current predicament.

“I can make a couple of recommendations if you’re interested” The man would chime in after the topic of security systems came up. He agreed as well that location sharing would be a good idea, however he frowned at the thought of it being used specifically to discover them after they had been kidnapped.

“Don’t talk like that” Jayden said flatly. “There’s always been a delay in between killings in the past right? That means you two should be safe” He said, though he didn’t sound very sure of his own words there. “Look....” He paused a bit, as if thinking over his next couple of words.

“I got a gun at home, a pistol… never really used it, mostly just thought of it as a deterrent than anything else. If you think it’ll make you feel safer I can let you two have it until all of this bullshit is over and down with”

* * *

_“I can make a couple of recommendations if you’re interested”_

  
“Sure,” Caleb said, already pulling up a few searches through Google. “Normally I’d say we could use better locks, possibly a new door, actually. The backdoor has a window on it and our _last _stalker just punched the lower corner panel out to let himself in... Oh, cameras and a alert system would be cool too.”  
  


_“That means you two should be safe” _

  
“Not sure if he wants to kill us,” thinking on it, Caleb forwarded the image he’d taken of the personal note to Jayden. “Or...not sure if that’s what he’s planning on doing _right away.”_  
  
“Almost home,” Will commented in the background as they made pulled into the neighborhood their house was on.  
  
“That’s the note he left us,” Caleb said once the image went through. “I don’t know, sounds kind of kinky.”  
  
In the background, Will sighed an exasperated sigh. He still hadn’t read the note yet and he very much doubted he wanted to know the contents of it now.  
  


_“If you think it’ll make you feel safer I can let you two have it until all of this bullshit is over and down with”_

  
“That’s nice of you, but we’ll have to pass on that I think,” Will said as he pulled along the curb in front of the small, quaint house. “Supposedly most victims who arm themselves find themselves on the wrong side of their own gun.” Putting the car into park, he cut the engine. “And neither of us know how to use one anyway.”  
  
“Why don’t you come over, I’m sure that’ll make Will feel safe.” Caleb was _mostly _joking, but Will flushed red and in the background there was sounds of a light scuffle between the two.  
  
“You don’t have to do anything like that,” Will said directly into the phone, clearly the victor in whatever minor skirmish took place. “We’ll just lock up, like you said, there’s always a delay and I’m sure if he _is _going to kill us it’ll be planned out a little more.”

* * *

“Just figured I would offer” Jayden said in response to the gun. Probably for the best anyway.  
  
He then paused, pretending to look at the note that had been sent. “And this is supposed to make me feel better about your current safety…?” He said warily, then let out a sigh when Caleb seemingly joked about the situation again. There were sounds of light wrestling that he waited through before he heard Will’s voice.  
  
“If you need me there I can be there-” Jayden said at first then quickly corrected himself. “Actually scratch that. I’m heading over, what’s your address?” He continued. “This entire evening’s giving me a bad feeling. Don’t want to wake up tomorrow to even more bad news because I didn’t go with my gut instinct here”

* * *

_“And this is supposed to make me feel better about your current safety…?”_

  
On the other end, Caleb had to ponder at Jayden’s response. He doubted the contents of the note would make anyone feel better about the current situation. He did think that the note implied that, for the time being, Jayden didn’t have to worry about being blindsided by one of those tedious victim’s profiles on the evening news.  
  


_“Don’t want to wake up tomorrow to even more bad news because I didn’t go with my gut instinct here”_

  
“If we die who would cover our deaths?” Caleb complained, for the first time sounding actually upset about the whole thing and not even over anything worth being upset about. “The media and the police are going to butcher the whole thing. That’d be the real tragedy here.”  
  
“I’ll send our address,” Will said, handing Caleb’s phone back to him before texting Jayden on his own. “Uh, how soon are you going to be here?” He then asked as they got out of the vehicle and started up the walkway.

* * *

“No one’s going to die. Stop saying that” Jayden said, letting out another exhausted sigh. “You ride out tonight, then tomorrow I go through my contacts and try to figure out who was on that themeing committee. We figure that out and we might just be able to figure out everything else”  
  
There was a brief pause when his phone buzzed from a text, he briefly put his phone in front of him to quickly glance at it.  
  
‘About an hour, give or take’ He texted back. ‘Need to reschedule a few things’  
  
“Anyway I got to go. You see or hear anything suspicious send word” He said aloud. “Alright?”

* * *

_“No one’s going to die. Stop saying that” _

  
“I’m _pretty sure _people are going to die,” Caleb said, snapping out of his brief melancholy quickly enough. “That’s sort of what they _do.”_  
  


_“We figure that out and we might just be able to figure out everything else”_

  
“I’m sure Abigail thought the same,” Caleb quipped, “but it’s better than nothing, just need to survive the night I guess.”  
  


_‘Need to reschedule a few things’_

  
Will took a moment to unlock the door, fumbling with the keys from both the cold and the fact that his hands were shaking a little. It was a lot to take in, between the whiplash of the interview and finding Abigail dead to _knowing _that the Midnight Killer was, in fact, watching their streams. After a moment, the door was opened and both Will and Caleb entered. Turning around, Will went ahead and turned the deadbolt, securing the door. From there, without even taking his shoes off, he went around and double, even triple, checked all the windows as well as the back door. It was far from secure enough in his opinion, but they’d presumably at least hear if someone broke in.  
  


_“You see or hear anything suspicious send word” ... “Alright?”_

  
“Sure thing, dad,” Caleb responded before ending the call.  
  
“What do we do now?” Will asked, settling in on the couch. “Also, I’m going to have to read that note sometime, might as well be now.”  
  
“If you’re sure...” digging the physical copy of the note out of his pocket, Caleb went over and handed it off to Will.  
  
For his part, Will kept it together pretty well. His face took on an ashen tone and his trembling got worse, but at least he didn’t go into all our panic mode. Reading and re-reading it, he was less and less sure of their safety. Biting his lip, he knew that locks and doors could only do so much.  
  
“He doesn’t know where we live,” Caleb offered as a form of assurance. “He can’t break in if he doesn’t know _which _house to break into.”  
  
“He’s been stalking us since the Greene case,” Will said, frowning, “he could have followed us home any number of times since then. Everyone knows where we go to school, he’s had weeks if not months to potentially plan. We’re assuming he’s going to give us time only because there’s always a delay between the murders, but we’ve already given him a head start.”  
  
“We’ll just wait for Jayden to get here,” Caleb said with a shrug, not sure what else they could do in the meanwhile.

* * *

When the call had ended, Jayden just locked his phone again and stuffed it back inside of the inner pocket of his suit coat. He continued on his way, humming to himself lightly as he did, until he stopped and realized that during the call he had somehow absentmindedly led himself to a dark side-street filled with pawn shops and carryout that were all already closed. Anyone else might have felt worried being in such a situation, Jayden however just sighed and shook his head for not paying attention to where he was going.  
  
It took a while to backtrack to somewhere a bit more populated, and even longer time waiting around for another Uber. Luckily however he chanced upon a lone coffee shop that still happened to be opened, and got himself a nice latte to pass the time.  
  
When he eventually got back to his condo, he threw his clothes into the wash then quickly hopped into the shower and got himself cleaned up. After hopping out he, he wavered back and forth between his usual business wear and something more casual, eventually opting for casual. That decided, he just tossed on a white t-shirt with a gray hoodie overtop, with a dark winter coat overtop of that. After slipping on some boxers,a pair of faded jeans and a pair of black boots he headed right back out, still humming to himself as if there was absolutely nothing wrong going on that evening.  
  
He had to admit the mask was annoying though. Pretending to be worried, pretending to be concerned when absolutely everything was perfectly fine and going his way. Such irritating roles he always had to play, if only people understood him better when the facade was dropped.  
  
Jayden wouldn’t actually arrive an hour later. Between his backtracking, waiting for two ubers to carry him around, having to go back to change and wash, he wouldn’t arrive to the duo’s doorstep until just over two hours since he originally stated that he was coming over. When he did arrive though, he thought about knocking. However he stopped himself and gave Will a Facetime request so that they could confirm it was indeed him standing out front.  
  
“No one around far as I can tell” He said, when the request was answered, then glanced around another time at the dark neighborhood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an ongoing roleplay between myself and someone else. It'll be updated as long as the roleplay continues.
> 
> Important: Due to the nature of roleplaying, the back and forth between Jayden and Will/Caleb happens because these are posts written back and forth between myself and my RP partner.


	8. The Long Night I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Caleb realizes they may have fucked up while poking around Abigail's apartment. Jayden isn't too happy. 
> 
> NOTE: So, I've considered possibly editing a version of this that is more reader-friendly, rather than just cleaning up the roleplay logs to post. That being said, I haven't done so simply because I don't think that many people are actually reading this.

It was around the hour and a half mark that Will had started to get anxious again. In the time after arriving home and reading the note, both him and Caleb had tried to take their mind off of things by focusing on school. Specifically, schoolwork that had nothing to do with the Midnight Killer. Despite Will’s anxiety, Caleb pointed out that the Midnight Killer likely wasn’t going to kill twice in one night and he’d already killed an artist, so there was no reason to get worked up over Jayden being late.  
  
Two hours in, and caught up on studying and making some edits to a term paper, Will had started to pace around the room. While he had implied they’d be busy preparing for finals, Will had only been half truthful. He wasn’t even a little worried about that as he was usually on top of things academically anyway. Caleb, meanwhile, was still working on something or another on his laptop. Despite being somewhat more analytical between the two of them, Caleb hadn’t taken school as seriously and had more to work on to prepare for the final few weeks of the semester.  
  
Without school to distract him, Will had disappeared into the kitchen to work on dinner. When Jayden called, he’d been in the middle of chopping up vegetables and the ringing startled him more than he’d like to admit.  
  
“Ow, fuck!” Will’s shout of pain could be heard in the living room and alerted Caleb, who quickly appeared in the kitchen. “Sliced my finger, can you answer that?” He asked, nodding towards his phone while running cold water over the cut.  
  


_“No one around far as I can tell,” _

  
“Just us chickens?” Caleb quipped as he answered the call, though the camera was facing Will who looked a little put off. “I’ll go answer the door then, just knock if you don’t get ambushed before then.”  
  
Setting the phone down beside Will, Caleb wandered back out to the living room to answer the door. The blinds and curtains had all been drawn and aside from the lights in the living room and kitchen the house was dark. Stopping in front of the door, Caleb flicked on the porch lights before he unlocked the deadbolt and pulled it open, stepping off to the side and waiting for Jayden to come in.

* * *

“Seems like it,” Jayden responded, then shifted a bit as he moved to knock on the door. He even gave a couple of cursory glances behind himself to look out for a supposed killer that he knew wasn’t even there.  
  
When the door was finally opened, Jayden invited himself inside, hands still stuffed inside of the pockets of his coat. “First time in a while I’ve been in an actual house. Most of my acquaintances live in condos and penthouses...” He quipped as he made his way through the dark halls, glancing around as he did. “...shame it’s not under better circumstances.”  
  
He then made his way over toward the living room, then quickly pulled off his coat and laid it against an armrest. That done, he leaned back against the cushion and let out an exhausted sigh. “At least you two are still here. After what you told me about Abigail, I was starting to think that the killer was going after people I’ve been in contact with,” he said lowly.  
  
“It’s only been three out… I don’t even want to know how many, but it still feels this way,”

* * *

Caleb closed and locked the door once Jayden was inside. He didn’t want to imagine some homicidal maniac lurking around in the bushes, though that thought made him wonder if they should alert the neighbors to the potential danger. Shaking his head, Caleb abandoned that thought, knowing full well that based on what he knew about the Midnight Killer, lurking in bushes didn’t fit the profile.  
  


_“...shame it’s not under better circumstances”_

  
“I can’t tell if that’s a humble brag or not,” Caleb commented while following after Jayden deeper into the house. “Or a not-so-humble brag.”  
  
The living room was probably best described as cozy, if not somewhat mismatched. The walls were an off white shade and the carpeting was a grayish hue. The wood of the coffee table, the side tables, and the entertainment center were a different shade of brown. The couch itself was nice and took up much of the space, it was clearly intended to be able to host a number of people. The TV, likewise, was probably bigger than it needed to be and below it was a few different consoles that didn’t appear to be played that often in recent times. The decor was much the same, various costers that didn’t match were laid out on the tables and the walls were decorated with what looked like frames filled with pinned butterflies. Over by the window looking out over the front yard lay a series of crystals on the ledge.  
  


_“I was starting to think that the killer was going after people I’ve been in contact with” _

  
“Maybe, maybe not,” Caleb said, giving Jayden an odd look, not even caring if he was blatantly staring. “He’s probably a friend of yours for all you know, same circles and all that.” Taking a seat along the opposite end of the couch, Caleb seemed to consider something. “He’s been messaging us since the Greene’s Q and A, so there’s no reason to assume he’s bothering us _because_ of you.”  
  


_“It’s only been three out… I don’t even want to know how many, but it still feels this way”_

  
“Abigail would be number forty-six,” Caleb commented flippantly, “unless there are more victims we don’t know about or haven’t been discovered yet.”  
  
“We’re out of bandaids,” Will called down the hall from the kitchen. “But whatever, I guess paper towels will do for now,” he continued when he appeared behind the couch with a wad of the aforementioned paper towels pressed against his hand. “So, do we have a plan or...?” Coming around, Will took a seat beside Caleb, though closer to Jayden. “What am I even saying, if we had a plan tonight would have gone differently and Abigail wouldn’t be dead.”

* * *

“I know many people in many circles. If I could just pick out any one person and call them the killer I would have already done so by now” Jayden said flatly, then sighed when Caleb gave him the body count he didn’t ask for. He did have to admire him for bothering to keep track, as he hadn’t gone so himself. He knew though that the number in the media was likely off, a couple of numbers too low due to some bodies never even being discovered.  
  
“Can’t say I have one,” Jayden then said with a slight hunch of the shoulders when asked if they had planned. “I got a coffee earlier. Figured I would stay up and keep an eye out for anything that might be suspicious,” he said, moving slightly to rub the back of his neck with his hand. “To be honest, my place would properly be more secure but… awkward request to make considering everything that's happened tonight.”  
  
After his hand came back around he closed his eyes again and leaned back, rubbing his temples a bit to try and think over things. “As for this week… you might have the police coming after you considering you did that interview before all this happened. Not sure what would be better here - playing dumb versus telling them exactly what happened,” he said, looking a bit odd at the thought of having to discuss how to handle the police of all people.  
  
“I'll have to think. Might be better for you to just lawyer up and have them handle things for you."

* * *

_"If I could just pick out any one person and call them the killer I would have already done so by now”_

  
"Well," Caleb started, strangely jovial all things considered, "you did a good job of not pointing the finger at any students, so there's that."  
  


_“To be honest, my place would properly be more secure but… awkward request to make considering everything that's happened tonight”_

  
"An awkward request like inviting us back to your place?" Practically beaming, Caleb seemed to find this particularly amusing. "It might be more secure, but I don't know if you want us leading the Midnight Killer to your doorstep."  
  
It was unspoken between Will and Caleb, but Caleb found it unlikely that Will would be thrilled about sleeping in a strange place. That and in the home of a man they had only just met and didn't know enough about. Nevermind the fact that they didn't know if Jayden had space or beds for something like that.  
  


_"Not sure what would be better here - playing dumb versus telling them exactly what happened” _

  
"You do know it'll look bad if they find out we were in the apartment and didn't call the police right away, right?" Caleb asked, thinking of how to approach things. "I mean, who's to say we actually went inside? We can easily tell them everything but omit the part about going in and poking around. Sure, the door was unlocked, but they can't prove we went inside. If they pull Abigail's phone logs...oh, fuck..."  
  
Sitting there for a moment, Caleb realized the texts he replied to 'Abigail' with might be on the phone. Thinking it over, Caleb doubted he had a good explanation for the texts that didn't involve him seeing the entire crime scene and the book. A moment longer, he realized that his ripping part of the page out was _technically_ tampering with evidence. Even if he hadn't _done _anything he doubted the police would let him off so easily.  
  


_“I'll have to think. Might be better for you to just lawyer up and have them handle things for you"_

  
"Jesus _Fucking_ Christ," Will murmured, "I'm going to need therapy after all of this," he continued, running a hand through his hair. "The guy who put us in this situation donated _a lot_ of money so we've probably got enough for security upgrades and a lawyer might as well throw a therapist in there too."  
  
Sighing, Will examined the cut on his finger. It hadn't been a particularly long cut, but it had been deep and had been somewhat of a mess to deal with. Sticking the towels back over it, he went quiet for a moment, not sure what to do now.  
  
"As much as I'd like to visit my favorite therapist," Will frowned, knowing it was a slippery slope. "Tonight seems like a bad night to get blackout drunk."  
  
"We need to go back," Caleb said quietly, uncharacteristically nervous all of a sudden. "Abigail's phone, I tried to text the killer and the police will _know_ we were inside if they open it and read what I sent."

* * *

“You don’t need to go back,” Jayden said in response almost automatically, thinking that they were still trying to come up with another excuse to return and poke around at the crime scene again. “It’s a phone. Those all auto-lock at this point. They won’t be able to see any of the texts if they can’t guess the password” That said, it probably depended on the make and model of her phone, as well as the settings she was currently using. It could have been very possible that she was using one of the lock screens that revealed the number of the sender or provided a brief glimpse of the message that was being received.  
  
  
After thinking over the potential alternatives, Jayden let out a heavy sigh. The hand at his temple came down and pinched at the bridge of his nose. “Why didn’t you just fucking leave the moment you saw her dead…” He said, groaning beneath his breath. “Did you end up doing anything else that might accidentally get you incriminated?”

* * *

_"They won’t be able to see any of the texts if they can’t guess the password” _

  
Caleb looked unsure. There were a lot of question marks that came with Abigail's phone. Out of all the things they'd poked at they hadn't gone as far as to pick it up and examine it extensively. It could very easily display the number and message, but it might not. The police might never guess the password, but who was to say they wouldn't get lucky? Frustrated, Caleb regretted not giving themselves more time to search the place more thoroughly and remove evidence that they had been there.  
  


_“Did you end up doing anything else that might accidentally get you incriminated?”_

  
"I might have checked her pulse to make sure she was _actually dead," _Caleb replied. "I did touch the autograph book as well, but to be entirely fair, my fingerprints aren't on record and I hadn't _expected _to become a suspect when we're convinced we might be the next victims."  
  
"I touched the doorknob," Will added. "Caleb had his gloves on when we went inside, so aside from the doorknob, Abigail's neck, and the book the place should be clean."  
  
"If the body lays there long enough they might not be able to get a fingerprint off of her neck," frowning, Caleb realized that was somewhat morbid. "The police botch fingerprints all the time..." he sounded increasingly unsure.

* * *

Jayden just groaned again from their responses. The nicer, more considerate side of him was concerned over there being at the crime scene in the first place, touching and manipulating things that they had no business touching and manipulating. The murderous, more possessive side of him didn’t want the police going after the wrong people… again. Not to mention, the two were his and his alone. He’d be damned if he’d allowed those law-enforcing ingrates to lay a finger on them before he did.  
  
“Great…” Jayden said with a groan, seemingly pinching the bridge of his nose even harder the more he heard from them. Somehow he now needed to figure out how to fix this without the two catching on to him.  
  
“Alright… nnn…” He said, pausing a bit to think then took in a deep breath and stood up. “Fuck..” He grumbled, again. “Guess there’s no choice but to go back at this point,” he murmured. “I got get this whole business with fingerprints but that can’t be too difficult to deal with right? You wipe off the spot with a napkin or something?” He said, then groaned at the sudden turn the conversation had gone to. “Other than that, we just get that book and the phone… it’ll be like the two of you were never even there.”

* * *

_“Guess there’s no choice but to go back at this point” _

  
Caleb seemed to brighten up immediately at the thought of going back. Will, on the other hand, looked less than thrilled at the prospect of returning to the scene of the crime. As far as Will was concerned, the only good thing out of all of this was the fact that if they were going to return it wasn’t by themselves. He was still worried that the Midnight Killer was lying in wait to ambush them, but figured that a third person’s presence was enough of a deterrent.  
  


_“You wipe off the spot with a napkin or something?” _

  
“Soap and water should break down the oils well enough,” Will offered, knowing that once the doorknob was clean and the phone and book were gone they should be in the clear.  
  
“The doorknob is metal so it’s not as difficult as removing fingerprints from a more porous surface.” Caleb piped up, looking thoughtful for a moment. “We’re going to have to make a point of not touching anything if there’s a next time after this... Or I guess just keep a set of gloves on us.”  
  


_“Other than that, we just get that book and the phone… it’ll be like the two of you were never even there”_

  
“Can we keep the book?” Caleb asked, sounding much more enthusiastic than anyone had a right to be over taking a keepsake from a crime scene. “I mean, it’s not like the police are going to be looking for a random autograph book...”  
  
“Do you think he picked it up specifically for the occasion?” Will asked sardonically. “I swear to God if that thing ends up being displayed with our bodies....” Pausing, Will shook his head to clear his thoughts, then sighed. “I shouldn’t be thinking like that, it’s not helpful. Anyway, I can drive us, unless you think an uber would be less conspicuous?”

* * *

“I’m… not going to ask why the two of you already know this,” Jayden said with a shake of the head when the two seemed to already know how to deal with their fingerprints. If anything, he figured they happened upon such knowledge through their interests in crime scenes and serial killers.  
  
He then glanced over and gave Caleb an odd look at his sudden giddiness. “Why would you_ want_ to keep it?” However almost immediately after asking that he just shook his head against then already started moving toward the hallway leading out. “You know what? Let’s just go,” he said, already sounding exhausted over everything that was now happening.  
  
“Better to drive. They might make a request to Uber to pull travel records for the evening,” He said. “Better to go and park a good distance away. Walk to the building ourselves and cross our fingers that things haven’t been discovered yet,” he said, glad that he chose to wear something casual for the evening rather than his usual business wear. It would have been awkward for him to show up at the same location twice wearing the same time.  
  
“All this plotting and scheming… makes it feel like we’re the culprits here.”

* * *

_“I’m… not going to ask why the two of you already know this” _

Looking much too pleased with himself, Caleb reached over the side of the couch to his backpack before digging around. After a moment, he retrieved a paperclip and slipped that into his pocket. He was already planning on slipping the SIM card out of Abigail’s phone once they got back to her apartment. From there he was sure it’d be safe to leave the building with it to dispose of the whole thing. He really didn’t like the idea of carrying a potential tracking device around only to lead the police to their doorstep.

_“You know what? Let’s just go” _

“I didn’t hear a ‘no,’” Caleb stated as Will got up and followed after Jayden, Caleb followed shortly after.

_“Walk to the building ourselves and cross our fingers that things haven’t been discovered yet” _

“Is there anyone who might check in with her?” Caleb asked in a very ‘you’re her acquaintance, not us’ sort of tone. “Sounded like everyone started hating her after the Sir William incident,” he continued.

“I’ll meet the two of you outside,” Will said, detouring towards the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Will went about putting things away that he’d left out when Jayden arrived. It took a minute, then he grabbed his coat and keys before heading to the door. He paused only to put his shoes on.

_“All this plotting and scheming… makes it feel like we’re the culprits here” _

“I’m sure you’d be a natural if you ever took up homicide,” there was a sarcastic edge to Caleb’s voice this time as if the idea of Jayden killing anyone was peak comedy to him. “Oh, on a real note, Abigail is dead, so...maybe just pretend she’s sleeping? If the dead body thing still squicks you out.”

“All of this to avoid being accused of the murders we’re trying to solve…” Will grumbled as he locked up behind them before following after Caleb towards the jeep. “Meanwhile the Midnight Killer is out there probably plotting the next one and we have no way of predicting who the next victim might be.”

Unlocking the doors, Will got into the driver’s seat while Caleb waited for Jayden to pick a seat before sliding into whatever was left. Once everyone was buckled in, Will started off towards the apartment complex.

* * *

“Don’t know,” Jayden replied with a casual shrug when asked if he knew whether or not there would be people potentially checking up on Abigail. “I only happened to know of her through my business dealings with Sir William, the man couldn’t make heads or tails of his own schedule so everything went through her. Up until this incident we never spoke much,” he said as he made his way out then stood off to one side as they waited for Will to finish wrapping things up. “Even then, she always seemed so paranoid and skittish. Made it difficult to hold a normal conversation.”  
  
  
He then frowned when Caleb suggested he’d be a natural at killing, even if it was clear sarcasm. Inwardly, however, he found the comment quite amusing. “Except she isn’t sleeping” Jayden stated flatly. “I don’t even need to go in, clearly you two know how to handle this kind of thing better than I,” he said. “I’ll just keep watch and distract in case anyone else happens to be nearby. I’m good with that at least.”  
  
That said, he quietly got inside of one of the back seats closest to the window and got himself settled before they took off.


	9. The Long Night II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which MORE poking around happens in Abigail's apartment, Jayden and Caleb have a difference of opinion, and Will is in an awkward position.

The complex was far quieter the second time around, due to the lateness of the evening rather than because of anything suspicious happening. There were no police around and no others in the lobby except for a lone receptionist who wasn’t even paying the trio any attention. Despite her seeming disinterest however, Jayden took care to not allow himself to be noticed as they made their way over to the elevator.  
  
Back upstairs on Abigail’s floor, they would find that the room was still open and unlocked, however, the vibe inside was far different. The room itself was far darker given that the candles had long since burned out. Off in the distance, the television was now showing a black screen with a lone message asking if viewers wished to play the next video.  
  
There was still the subtle, lingering scent of vanilla but apart from take the room as a whole had a more sinister tone to it.

* * *

_“Made it difficult to hold a normal conversation”_

“Well,” Caleb started, unsure if this was a good or bad development. “If she doesn’t have many friends or family checking up on her it’ll be a while before the police become a problem.”

_“I’m good with that at least”_

“It’s not like she’s decaying yet or anything,” Caleb said with a handwave. “And it’s not like she’s going to get up and lunge at you or anything. It’s just a corpse, I don’t really understand why it’s that off-putting to you.”

“Having a look out would be great,” Will interjected, knowing Caleb was just prodding at Jayden for whatever amusement he’d get out of the artist’s alleged discomfort. “Or a distraction if someone does come around.”

Personally, Will was still pretty disturbed to be confronted by the sight of the corpse of someone he had spoken to only a day before. The others hadn’t bothered him as much, though he’d only viewed images of them. For Will, it was hard to separate ‘Abigail’ from the corpse on the couch. Caleb, meanwhile, seemed to regard the deceased as an inanimate object rather than a person.

-

Neither Caleb or Will spoke as the three of them made their way to the elevator. It was much quieter overall at this hour and the unspoken agreement seemed to be that they didn’t want to draw attention to themselves. Thankfully, they arrived at Abigail’s door without incident.

Quietly, Caleb who presently had his gloves on opened the door and let himself and Will in before shutting it behind them. Looking around, it was hard to ignore the dramatic shift in the atmosphere. Caleb had to ask himself if the Midnight Killer had expected them to wait out the earlier ambiance for it. Now it was much harder to pretend there was nothing amiss and that thought made him think of the note in the autograph book.

“I’ll go get the book and phone,” Caleb said, while Will headed towards the kitchen to get something to wipe the doorknobs with.

Walking into the living room, Caleb did a sweep of the room, trying to see if he missed something. Briefly, he thought of ‘Clare’ and if it was a matter of perspective. If he was looking at the whole scene wrong or if the later hour was the shift in perspective. A moment later, he picked up the book, then went over to Abigail’s desk to pick the phone up. Retrieving his paperclip, he went about removing the SIM card.

Will, meanwhile, had gotten a rag covered in soap and water before going back to the door to make sure their prints were gone. As he did so, he briefly opened the door to get outside before closing it again. As it was, he was planning on disposing of the rag elsewhere, perhaps a dumpster outside when they left.

Back with Caleb, he had since snapped the SIM card in half and was walking into the kitchen as Will worked on the door. Casually, he tossed the broken halves down the sink, letting the water run for a moment. If the break didn’t render it useless, he was sure waterlogging it would. Then again, it might be impossible to retrieve after going down the drain.

“I’m going to look around,” Caleb whispered, indicating the bedroom and bathroom, certain he might have overlooked something.

“I’m coming with,” Will replied, keeping his voice low as well as he followed Caleb back. “Someone has to make sure you don’t touch anything else.”

* * *

Despite actually agreeing with Caleb on most things, Jayden pretended to look more and more uncomfortable as they steadily made their way back to the complex.  
  
When they finally arrived at Abigail’s door, Jayden wavered back and forth between waiting outside in the hall for the two to finish and waiting within the room itself. Eventually, and looking extremely conflicted by the decision, he chose to head inside and wait right next to the door. Much as he seemingly didn’t want to be inside, he figured that would be the safer option to take as opposed to lingering on his own out in the halls and looking extremely suspicious and anxious while doing so.  
  
As he waited, Jayden had a moment to himself to appreciate the tonal shift he had created. However, he did admit to himself that the entire thing would have ended up being extremely awkward had anyone else ended up reading the Autograph book at a later date and time. The note wouldn’t make sense given the current state of things. It really was relieving to finally have others be able to see things as it was meant to be seen.  
  
Considering the two were busy doing their thing, Jayden didn’t have much else to do but however beside the door and listen out for any footsteps nearby.  
  
“We came here to cover your tracks,” The man hissed in a loud whisper. “Not so you could continue playing detective.”  
  
Regardless, the bathroom and bedroom would look just as spotless as the other rooms. Apparently there had been candles burning there as well, though like the others they had long since gone out. Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be anything else of note.  
  
By the time they returned back to the living room, Jayden had started moving and looking around, though he still stayed clear of the sofa and Abigail’s corpse and kept close to the exit. “Given Abigail’s mental state I’d have thought this place to be… messier…” He mused. “Think she had a maid come around and tidy the place up? Maybe they might have noticed something.”

* * *

_“Not so you could continue playing detective”_

  
“You sound worried,” Caleb whispered back, once again handwaving Jayden’s concerns away. “Don’t worry, we won’t touch anything this time, promise.”  
  
Going through the bedroom and bathroom, Caleb had to ask himself if _Abigail _might have left any clues behind. He didn’t have an accurate time frame between her leaving the library and the Midnight Killer luring them to her apartment. There had been a little over twenty-four hours there and Caleb could only guess as to how that time was spent. Either way, even after poking (with thankfully gloved hands this time) at everything he could find, Caleb found nothing worth noting. He found it odd as they walked back into the living room.  
  


_“Maybe they might have noticed something”_

  
“It’s strangely devoid of a _normal _amount of mess,” Will commented. “Most people aren’t this clean, they leave things lying around, but this feels...artificial?” Frowning, Will edged closer to the door. “Staged is a better word, it reminds me of the sets we have in the art department for on-site filming like it was set up to look this way.”  
  
“Hmm, is there any way to check if Abigail hired a maid service?” Caleb asked, knowing full well that meant the body would be discovered sooner rather than later if that was the case. “But I’d think the killer would have also cleaned up after himself to avoid leaving evidence.”  
  
“Or it could be apart of whatever atmosphere he was going for,” Will said with a shrug. “We should really get going.”

* * *

“We should,” Jayden said, shaking his head slightly before he glanced over toward the window. “Could have sworn I heard sirens a moment ago.”  
  
Though he would have been the first to head out, he waited for one of the two to open the door before him as the last thing he cared for was getting his own fingerprints attached to anything in the room. “Not sure what you were expecting to find,” he then said as they made their way back down. “Or what you expect to do with whatever you found. For all you know, they were expecting you to leave so that they could get into your house and lie in wait for you to come back.” He paused then shook his head.  
  
“Not that that’s likely to happen, given that it’s three people on the lookout.” That said, he did let out a sigh right after. “Though, I still don’t know why you think it’s a bright idea to go poking around. Even if you did come across something what is there to do about it? Parade it all over your YouTube channel and incriminate yourselves even further?”

* * *

_“Could have sworn I heard sirens a moment ago”_

  
“Doesn’t necessarily mean they’re coming _here_,” Caleb insisted with a shrug. “The Midnight Killer isn’t the only problem this city has.”  
  
Once everyone was out, Will shut the door and gave the doorknob one last wipe down before balling the rag up into his closed fist. Caleb, meanwhile, held the autograph book under one arm and was practically radiating excited energy despite them not really finding anything substantial.  
  


_“For all you know, they were expecting you to leave so that they could get into your house and lie in wait for you to come back” _

  
“Still not sure he’s planning on murdering us right away,” Caleb replied with a shrug. “I wasn’t sure what we were expecting to find either, but…it’s different looking, the crime scene I mean. It even gives off a different vibe than it did earlier.”  
  
“Some of the other crime scenes weren’t discovered until weeks or months after the time of death,” Will added. “Most of them, like the Greene’s, didn’t really change over time.”  
  
“But Abigail’s did,” Caleb continued. “I...don’t know if the atmospheric change was intentional,” he murmured while they walked, almost to himself. “But he wanted us to see it as it was originally set up, the police would have missed that.”  
  


_“Parade it all over your YouTube channel and incriminate yourselves even further?”_

  
“You’re making it sound like we are the Midnight Killer,” Caleb sounded almost annoyed now, though he understood how bad things looked from the interview alone.  
  
“If we did find something we wouldn’t be able to post it in a video,” Will said with a shrug. “That being said, Abigail’s case had a more personal touch, if there was anything to find it might have been directed at us specifically.”  
  
“Like the personal note,” frowning, Caleb considered something. “It’d have looked pretty bad if the Midnight Killer left that and the police found it first.”

* * *

“Considering how gung-ho you’ve been about this entire thing, that wouldn’t come as a surprise,” Jayden stated flatly when it was brought up once again that the two of them were potentially the Midnight Killer. He, of course, knew better. There wasn’t really anything to be afraid of when it came to these two, it was awkward having to pretend as such though. “But that’s the problem with this entire thing, isn’t it? Well, one of the main problems of this whole thing. Can’t really trust anyone.”  
  
He listened for a bit as the two continued, and thought over their words carefully. “That letter was particularly… specific,” Jayden responded. “From what I remember of it though. If the police did find it first then they’d have to put you under protection or something, right? Since it was basically a threat.” A pause. “Though… considering how every other crime scene thus far had lacked any leads or clues, it sounds like they were convinced that there was little chance that the note would fall into the police’s hands at all.” His brow narrowed a bit at the thought. “It sounded like they knew exactly what was going to happen, that you’ll rush right over without a second thought. If they really wanted, the two of you wouldn’t even be here right now.”  
  
He frowned, then glanced over at the two. “You said you two were texting them… is that why you wanted to come back so badly, because you were told to?”

* * *

_“Can’t really trust anyone”_

  
“With that mindset, _you_ could be the Midnight Killer,” Caleb retorted. “But I’m still thinking it was someone on the theming committee for the expo.”  
  


_“If they really wanted, the two of you wouldn’t even be here right now”_

  
“I don’t trust the police,” Will said simply, “even if they might try to keep us safe.”  
  
“We’ve done this song and dance with them before,” Caleb sighed, “the last stalker we had has a parole hearing coming up, we weren’t safe six months ago and we’re certainly not safe now.”  
  


_“You said you two were texting them… is that why you wanted to come back so badly, because you were told to?”_

  
“What are you going to ask to check our phones next?” Caleb was a little huffy and gradually he moved to hold the book against his chest, almost defensively.  
  
“He uh...didn’t sound too thrilled that we took off so quickly,” Will added. “I’m not sure if he was meaning to lure us back again or not. ...After this, I think we should be more careful about how we react to his messages.”

* * *

“Fucking christ…” Jayden muttered. The man immediately stopped in place and pinched the bridge of his nose. “The goddamn murderous psycho wasn’t ‘thrilled’ that you didn’t do as you were told, so you start thinking it's a good idea to go ahead and fucking do as you were told.” He then slowly looked up and glance between the two of them. “Abigail’s dead. You two decide to go about tampering with a goddamn crime scene. TWICE.” He glanced at Caleb specifically. “You’re acting like you got a fucking... SOUVENIR…. Out of all of this.”  
  
  
“And why, huh? This all a game or something to the two of you? Some sort of mystery novel where the two of you are the protagonists? Thinking you’re gonna best the police and crack the case at the end of all this? Cause you’re not. You keep this up you really will end up dead like the lot of them. Just another number that gets added to that damned gallery of faces that gets played on the evening news.” He paused then shook his head and started walking on up ahead.  
  
“Only one around here with any goddamn common sense…” He muttered to himself.

* * *

_“The goddamn murderous psycho wasn’t ‘thrilled’ that you didn’t do as you were told, so you start thinking its a good idea to go ahead and fucking do as you were told”_

  
When Jayden stopped, Will and Caleb also came to a stop, then shared a look between them. With how Jayden framed the situation, it did seem like a bad idea to go along with anything the Midnight Killer told them to do. The note that had been left behind by the killer himself had even gone as far as to imply that if he wanted to set a trap for them, they likely would have walked right into it.  
  


_“You’re acting like you got a fucking... SOUVENIR…. Out of all of this”_

  
“You wouldn’t understand,” Caleb grit out, sounding increasingly frustrated.  
  


_“Just another number that gets added to that damned gallery of faces that gets played on the evening news” _

  
Through the diatribe, Will remained quiet, motionless, unsure how to respond or react to Jayden’s rhetorical questions and the conclusion that they’d end up dead like everyone else. Caleb, meanwhile, was practically fuming and only kept his mouth shut for Will’s sake. Once Jayden was done and started walking again, they stood there for a moment, uncertainly.  
  


_“Only one around here with any goddamn common sense…” _

  
“Caleb?” Will called in a semi-muted tone as the blond turned and started off in the other direction. Before he could ask what Caleb was doing, without turning, the blond waved him off, but the fact that he didn’t say anything told Will enough about Caleb’s mental state.  
  
After a moment, unsure of what to do, Will looked from Jayden, then to Caleb, and after a moment moved to match pace with Jayden.

* * *

Jayden continued on in silence until he was back at the jeep and then waited around for the other two to catch up - that is, if they decided to catch up and not around and ‘investigate’ the crime scene a third time. Both eyes were closed and he just leaned against the vehicle with his arms folded, trying to calm down.  
  
When he heard footsteps he looked up and glanced over at Will. “You might not care about your own safety but I do,” he said. Though still sounded somewhat peeved, then sighed and shook his head. “Why couldn’t be more simple. You two could have just been honest fans, students, and this would have been so much easier and less of a headache.”

* * *

_“You two could have just been honest fans, students, and this would have been so much easier and less of a headache”_

  
“It might be more simple if we weren’t actively looking for a serial killer,” Will replied while unlocking the doors. “Funny enough, we might not have approached you if not for the Midnight Killer,” he said while getting into the driver’s seat. “Caleb and I actually moved in together to make working on this project easier.”  
  
While in the jeep, Will buckled up and turned the engine on. Waiting for a moment, he got a text notification from Caleb.  
  
_‘I need time to myself,’_ the first text read.  
  
_‘I’ll be careful,’ _the second one read.  
  
_‘Where are you going?’_ Will texted back, only to get the address of a nearby bar as a response.  
  
“...We should probably go get Caleb after he cools down,” Will sighed. “He’s unfortunately pretty fearless in a world where there’s plenty to fear.”

* * *

“Tch.” Jayden didn’t bother with a response as he got into the jeep himself, against taking a spot in the back. After closing the door, he pulled out his own phone and started going through several of his own missed messages. “I just, I don’t get it,” he eventually said, breaking the silence that fell. “Most people are doing their part by trying to be more alert, more aware of things. Laying low and trying not to make themselves a target,” he said.  
  
“You two, on the other hand, are running around, publically, and basically putting a giant bullseye on yourself. Maybe I thought I’d give you a chance just in case you might have had investigative experience…. I was expecting interviews, research, that kind of thing. Instead what I get is a dead secretary and the two of you sloppily botching a crime scene,” he continued. And that was just covering fingerprints, he didn’t him bother to make a remark about potential footprints they might have left. That would just have to be something he’d have to return to double-check and clean up himself.  
  
“And how long that gonna take?” He next asked, shaking his head. “Just wait until he gets snatched up?”

* * *

_“Laying low and trying not to make themselves a target”_

  
“How has that worked out for them, I wonder?” Will asked quietly. “The smart thing to do would be to pack up and leave town,” with a sigh, he put his phone away and put the jeep into drive. “But not everyone can do that.”  
  


_“Instead what I get is a dead secretary and the two of you sloppily botching a crime scene”_

  
“Neither of us had ever planned on physically being _at _the crime scene,” Will commented while pulling away from the curb. “We had an interview, we were hoping to get more information from ‘the dead secretary,’ but the Midnight Killer was ahead of us on that.” Taking a turn, Will started off towards the bar, hoping Caleb wasn’t being reckless. “You’re right about the crime scene though, we should have walked out and called the police as soon as we realized she was dead.” Pausing at a stoplight, he shook his head, “live and learn I guess. ...Well, live and learn for as long as we’ve got left.”  
  


_“Just wait until he gets snatched up?”_

  
“I can drop you off first, if you want,” Will asked, knowing tensions were running high with everyone involved as they drove through the now green light. “I was planning on dragging him out and home within the hour.”

* * *

“That works” Jayden responded with another dismissive shrug. “Two of you get to go and continue doing whatever without annoying dad around to ruin the mood” He never bother looking up from his phone as they slowly made their way through the city. “I probably could use the peace anyway, I got calls to make,” he said as he continued going through his texts, nothing particularly relevant or urgent. “Friend of mine seems like he might know something after all”

* * *

_“Two of you get to go and continue doing whatever without annoying dad around to ruin the mood”_

  
“You’re not ruining the mood,” Will replied after a moment. “I do get that you want us to stay safe,” frowning, Will wasn’t sure where to go with this. “I didn’t actually have parents growing up, so it’s...nice to have someone be concerned.”  
  


_“Friend of mine seems like he might know something after all”_

  
“Okay, where to?” Will asked, unsure if Jayden meant to wherever he lived, their house, or just a random location. “I don’t actually know where you live,” he said after a beat. “Would this friend happen to have a name? ...I’ve been meaning to ask, but...the right time never came up.” Pausing once more, Will seemed unsure of his choice of words. “I just think it’s...odd that you weren’t on the theming committee, out of all the artists in the city.”

* * *

“Oh?” Jayden said, looking up briefly from his phone to glance at Will through the rearview mirror. He didn’t say much else after that however and after a view seconds, he glanced back down and started looking through his phone.  
  
“Your place,” he repeated. “We might not be agreeing on things but I did say that I would keep watch through the night.” He hunched his shoulders in a slight shrug. “I’ll just keep out the way.”  
  
He looked up again and raised a brow when Will asked for a name. Honestly, he hadn’t been looking for info on the theming committee at all. In fact, the text he was currently looking at was brunch arrangements for that Sunday. “You can have that after I check in with him,” he said without missing a beat. “Let’s just say I’m not comfortable with freely giving away the names of my contacts after what happened to Abigail. You two might be fine with holding a bullseye but there are plenty of others in this city who aren’t.”  
  
He continued to listen after Will brought up the theming committee itself, in response, Jayden just shrugged again dismissively. “It’s not odd at all. You ought to know by now how much of a prick Sir William was, right?” He said. “I wasn’t aware of any specific committees but I knew he had his hands all over the gala itself. Told Abigail upfront a while ago that I had no intention of doing further business with the man.”

* * *

_“I’ll just keep out the way”_

  
Will nodded, changing routes to head back home for the time being. Even though a part of him was paranoid they’d come back later in the evening to find Jayden’s corpse posed in some horrifying fashion as an additional message. The thought made an unpleasant shiver run down Will’s spine.  
  


_“You two might be fine with holding a bullseye but there are plenty of others in this city who aren’t”_

  
“Right, I too can apparently be the homicidal maniac running around,” despite not getting a name, Will didn’t seem too put off. “This friend of yours could be the killer for all any of us know.”  
  


_“Told Abigail upfront a while ago that I had no intention of doing further business with the man”_

  
“Everyone and their grandmother knew that guy was a massive prick,” Will replied dryly. “I guess I can understand why you didn’t want to be involved then,” he continued while taking a few turns before ending up on the correct road leading towards the house. “Out of curiosity, if you had to have picked the theme, what might you have gone with?”  
  
Without much preamble, they pulled in front of the house. After a moment, Will dug around in his pockets for his house keys before handing them off to Jayden.  
  
“Make yourself at home I guess,” Will sighed, knowing it’d be a long night for himself and Caleb. “There’s food in the fridge, dinner kind of got sidelined.”

* * *

“Something red,” Jayden said after a bit of thought. He couldn’t even remember the fake theme he had previously given the committee. “My favorite color. Warm, welcoming…. Maybe something along the lines of a crimson arboretum. Roses, chrysanthemums, poinsettias... I think those are in season. All a darker shade of red. Think something like that would be nice and cozy,” he said with a nod, then steadily got out and took the keys from Will.  
  
“Stay safe alright?” He said then leaned in closer and looked him dead in the eye. “I mean it,” that said, he gave him a soft pat on the shoulder, squeezing it gently, then made his way back toward the house. How nice, he thought to himself. He wasn’t sure how long Caleb’s little tantrum would last but by the sound of things, it would take a moment. With any luck, he’d have a decent amount of time to go through a get a decent idea of the layout of the house.

* * *

_“Think something like that would be nice and cozy”_   


Will seemed to consider the scene Jayden was describing while making note that red was Jayden's favorite color. As pleasant and peaceful as the scene sounded, Will couldn't help but think that, in the end, the expo ended up _very_ red by the end of the night.  
  


_“Stay safe alright?” ... “I mean it” _

  
"I have no choice in the matter," Will said, the corners of his lips pulling into a brief smile, the first genuine one of the night. "But I'll try to stay alive if it makes you feel better."  
  
Once Jayden was inside, Will took off again, this time heading to the bar Caleb was heading towards. A small part of him was worried Caleb hadn't made it there safe. Another part of him was worried Caleb was there and doing something stupid. Finally, yet another part of him was worried that Caleb would find himself in some form of trouble regardless.  
  
The hallway and living room were the same as they'd been left. The kitchen was on the other side of the hall and beyond that was a small dining area. Most of Caleb's schoolwork and his laptop were strewn across the coffee table in the living room, while Will's seemed to be on the dining room table. There was still a lingering scent in the kitchen of whatever Will had been making prior to Jayden's arrival.  
  
Towards the end of the hall, passed both the living and dining areas, was a backdoor that lead out onto a small patio and the unkempt backyard. To the immediate side was a doorway that appeared to lead under the stairs, but also lead down into the basement. On the opposite side was a door leading into a small bathroom.  
  
The basement was essentially where all the streaming and video production work took place. There was the set as it always appeared in streams, as well as the camera equipment and two work stations and a large filing cabinet. To the side of the filing cabinet was what appeared to be a massive pinboard with various bits and pieces of the Midnight Killer murders linked together by red twine. Beyond those details, it was an ordinary basement and in one far corner was a washer and dryer duo.  
  
Upstairs lead to a hallway with a fairly large bedroom on one side, a large bathroom that seemed to have a door leading into the hallway, but also around into the bedroom. Across the hall seemed to be a small storage closet and at the end of the hall was a balcony overlooking the backyard.  
  
Overall, the decor was much the same as it had been everywhere else. The bedroom was a little more divided. One side featured shades of black and purple with various bits and pieces of horror memorabilia and a few new agey looking things. The other side was a mix of blue and white with less decor aside from a framed blue butterfly and neat stacks of folders organized by case.

* * *

Jayden took his time walking around the house, inspecting each of the different halls and rooms without explicitly touching or moving anything. Just as before he started in the living room, then slowly toward the kitchen, though as he walked he took note of both of their laptops and the work that they had been doing. He took a moment to glance out into the darkness of the backyard then made his way toward the basement where he took a good about of time inspecting the video equipment and pinboard off to the side.  
  
“Hm…” He murmured to himself as he glanced at the various ‘connections’ that were being made via the twine. He didn’t say much else as he next made his way back upstairs and took note of the duality of the bedroom, it being perfectly clear which of the two had claim to which side. Afterward, he then glanced around the various bathrooms, closets and side rooms before he made his way back down to the living room and casually started lounging about on the couch again.  
  
Humming to himself, he just took out his phone and booted up a small notepad and created a rough sketch of the layout as he waited for the two to return.


	10. The Long Night III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night eventually draws to a close, but not before Caleb lands himself in a bit of trouble and Will gets a new boyfriend. 
> 
> Also, thanks to everyone who has left comments or kudos, it's been a bit difficult to update this lately with a lot going on IRL. 
> 
> An additional also, lol, but the skeevy nightclub was partially inspired by a skeevy waterpark near where I grew up.

Around fifty or so minutes after Will had left Jayden would get a text from him.  
  
‘Might have a bit of a problem,’ the first line of text read.  
  
After spending maybe fifteen minutes driving, Will had arrived at the location Caleb had sent him. To call it a bar was somewhat of an understatement. The establishment might have started as a bar before Caleb and Will had been born, but it had grown substantially over the decades. Around the early 2000s, the building had changed hands and an empty lot next door had been purchased and added to the original construction. At this same time, with the added space, it became more of a nightclub to appeal to the growing mass of college students. Maybe three or four odd years ago, around the time of a generational shift, the owners had added an extra floor and converted a section of the place into a barcade. Once again, this was done in the hopes of appealing to yet another generation of twenty-somethings.  
  
Upon his arrival, Will had no issues getting inside. It was a relatively slow evening and with the recent killings, the party scene was still lackluster. Still, as he wandered he came across a few familiar faces from school. After a good fifteen minutes passed and no sign of Caleb, he grew concerned.  
  
It was at the forty-five-minute mark, after last seeing Jayden, that Will caved and asked a group of other students if they’d seen Caleb. A concerned look was shared between the group who indicated a closed-off section that lead to some stairs going up a floor. The giant ‘VIP’ sign and the pair of bouncers outside were a clear roadblock in Will’s attempt at finding Caleb.  
  
Even worse, Will had no idea _who_ Caleb might have gone off with. The fear that Caleb might have unwittingly wandered off with the Midnight Killer was a very real concern for Will. Even if that wasn’t the case, he didn’t trust Caleb to handle himself drunk or sober if he found himself in danger.  
  
‘Found other students, they said he went with some guy to the VIP lounge,’ he added a second line seconds after the last. ‘I’m worried.’  
  
To Caleb, he sent a text as well, ‘what do you think you’re doing?!’  
  
After finding himself left on read, Will let out a frustrated groan. With that, he made a self-admittedly stupid decision.  
  
‘You’re the only one he seems to listen to,’ Will said in the group chat, addressing the Midnight Killer, unaware he’d just sent another text to Jayden and uncaring that Caleb could see his message as well. ‘If you’re not presently murdering him, I need to get him home.’

* * *

Jayden raised a brow when he got another buzz that evening then quickly switched away from his app to glance at the text he had received from Will, and then a followup not long after.  
  
Personally, Jayden wasn’t the slightest bit concerned. The two were basically on the lookout for…. himself, and he was currently enjoying a nice, quiet evening at their place with no intention of kidnapping either at that moment. The streets were actually probably safer now than they had ever been with even thieves and muggers second-guessing staying out past sundown. There was however the potential issue of copy-cat killers, however… that could be troubling.  
  
‘Need me there to throw my weight around a bit?’  
  
He texted back, though still not seeming all that worried. It was a weird position to be in though since there was no way to directly tell Will that Caleb was probably fine without giving himself away.  
  
‘Where’s the place at? I can call an uber over’  
  
Unfortunately, however, the second message Will would send to the group chat would remain unread considering that Jayden had left his burner phone at his penthouse.  
  
‘Make take a bit though, they’ve always been super slow past sundown due to… well, you know’

* * *

_‘Need me there to throw my weight around a bit?’_

  
‘Might be helpful,’ Will sighed as he texted, the loud music and bright lights giving him a headache after the day he’d had. ‘I doubt I can get in by myself.’  
  


_‘Where’s the place at? I can call an uber over’_

  
‘I’ll send you the address,’ Will replied to Jayden shortly after sending his other message off to the Midnight Killer. ‘Sorry, I hate asking you to do this after everything else that’s happened.’  
  


_‘Make take a bit though, they’ve always been super slow past sundown due to… well, you know’_

  
‘I don’t think the Midnight Killer has killed an uber driver yet,’ texting, Will kept glancing over towards the stairs leading up, wishing Caleb would appear and they could leave. ‘Or if he has, the body hasn’t been discovered yet.’  
  
With the address sent to Jayden, and no sign of Caleb, Will found a seat at the bar and waited.

* * *

‘Np 🙂’  
  
Jayden texted back and waited until he had the address of the bar. That said, it was just a matter of waiting for an Uber driver to respond to his request and take him there himself.  
  
It wouldn’t be another thirty to forty-five before Jayden would arrive, and considering he was dressed more casually he was able to get inside without creating much fanfare. In a way however, he still somewhat stuck out like a sore thumb considering he was in his thirties and the bar was filled with a bunch of early twenty-somethings. Not to mention whereas everyone else was dressed to impressed he was there in a hoodie and some jeans. There were a few who knew who he actually was. Some glances, some whispers. There were others who didn’t and thought he was just some older creep there to pick up college students. Neither particularly bothered him as he made his way through the crowds to figure out where the so-called VIP section happened to be.  
  
‘Not my choice of venue’  
  
He pulled out his phone and texted Will again.  
  
‘Where are you?’  
  
He briefly locked his phone and pulled his way closer to the bar. He ordered himself a whiskey on the rocks and briefly chatted up the bartender to figure out where the lounge happened to be, only to end up looking rather silly when he was pointed to ‘VIP’ in blazing lights on the upper floor. He let out a sigh then tipped the man before heading other toward the area, taking subtle sips from his drink all the while.

* * *

_‘Not my choice of venue’_

  
‘Tbh, it was more fun when it was just us kids here,’ Will texted back, ‘but of course, the owners wanted to cater to old creeps chasing after college students.’  
  
‘No offense,’ Will texted a moment later, realizing how that sounded considering their age difference. ‘I mean, there are allegations that students have been roofied, but no concrete proof ever came up.’  
  


_‘Where are you?’_

  
‘I was at the bar, but moved over to the barcade side,’ Will responded. ‘By the skiiball games,’ he texted while looking around.  
  
Glancing around, Will eventually spotted Jayden. A look of relief crossed his face and without making too much of a scene, he beelined towards him. As dressed down as he was, Jayden still stood out and for some reason, despite the situation, Will barely stifled a laugh.  
  
“It’s a good thing you dressed down,” he commented over the noise. “Otherwise you’d look like you’re trying to find the PTA meeting.”

* * *

Jayden just glared at the response he got regarding who the owners were now catering to. Will was technically right though, and it just highlighted how out of place he was at that moment.  
  
‘Can’t be offended by the truth’  
  
Jayden responded back as he continued on his way, phone in one hand and drink in the other. After Will managed to spot him, he took another sip from his glass as he pocketed his phone.  
  
“I have better luck in that PTA wear,” he said flatly, then glanced over and winked. “Girls always go for the dashing gentlemen,” though usually he wore such things at upscale lounges and clubs, far more fitting than their current location. Then again, he glanced around briefly as he took another sip and figured he could still pull off that look around here. The catches would probably all be subpar, however, likely all desperate students thinking they’d be able to pick up a sugar daddy to take all of their troubles away.  
  
“Alright let’s get this over with,” he said and led the way toward the bouncers. Rather than speak he just pulled out a phone and googled himself.  
  
“Jayden Mattis,” he said flatly as if the pair of bouncers were just doors to be opened rather than people to converse with. As he spoke he held up his phone to show the clear picture of himself that came up from his google search. “Got a friend up there expecting me. After the night’s over you got my permission to tell him to fuck off for dragging me out here to this daycare” He continued, feigning a very convincing act of looking pompous and irritated.

* * *

_“Girls always go for the dashing gentlemen” _

  
“You mean girls who want you to pay their tuition and buy them overpriced handbags?” Will asked, eyebrows raising. “I like this look on you, actually, it’s more...approachable.”  
  


_“Alright let’s get this over with” _

  
While Jayden led them over to the bouncers, Will considered the situation. Perhaps he was reading too much into things, or perhaps he was experiencing a gradual perception shift. On the surface, this establishment seemed safe, normal, inviting towards people in Will’s age group. Meanwhile, if one were to look closer, they’d find that wasn’t the case. As Jayden googled himself, Will had to wonder how much money or influence it would take to make any allegations disappear. He also had to ask himself, just what really went on upstairs and behind closed doors.  
  
Will wished he could look at this place and see something safe and inviting, but the illusion had been well and truly shattered.  
  


_“After the night’s over you got my permission to tell him to fuck off for dragging me out here to this daycare” _

  
After they were let through, Will couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. As they made their way further up and in, he couldn’t help but notice the profound lack of cameras. Downstairs there had been plenty keeping track of those coming and going, but upstairs there was nothing.  
  
“Is that an admission that you’ve been babysitting this whole time?” Will asked, sounding faintly amused. Once upstairs, he paused, then realized the sound from downstairs didn’t carry up well. “...Is this place soundproofed?” He asked, rhetorically with a frown.  
  
Along with the lack of cameras, the upstairs was a sharp contrast to downstairs. Downstairs had been all bright lights and loud music and other noise clearly meant to draw in a specific crowd. Upstairs everything was darker, more muted, and Will could faintly make out some sort of ‘easy listening’ melodies coming in over the upstairs speaker system.  
  
Glancing at the upstairs bar, Will noted that a college student could never afford what that bar was stocked with. Still looking around, Will took in various booths, some occupied and others unoccupied. He tried not to look too closely, almost regarding it all like a dead body he didn’t want to look at. Instead, Will scanned the area, looking for blond hair and exuberance and after a moment he found the former.  
  
Off in a far corner, Caleb was in a circular booth with a somewhat older man, though Caleb’s demeanor was more muted and disinterested. In front of him were a number of now empty glasses, but that didn’t really explain the dazed look on his face. His coat and the autograph book were deposited onto the seat beside him, though he seemed disinterested in those things as well. What disturbed Will the most though was the fact that the man with Caleb seemed to have no qualms with feeling up a barely conscious college student.

* * *

“So you like this look, huh?” Jayden asked when they were let through. “Maybe I’ll start switching up my wardrobe then if we start meeting up a bit more,” he started as the stairs led to an area that was darker, quieter. “And if I were to put this evening to words ‘chaperoning’ would be the first to come to mind,” he said, glancing over. “Sounds nicer than ‘babysitting.’"  
  
As they got further, Jayden became more acutely aware of the kind of location he was in. No cameras, dark, soundproof - he had to remind himself that he was pretending to be a concerned professor-to-be and not out stalking his latest victim. The area hit all of his usual checkmarks for when it came to committing a crime and getting away completely unnoticed.  
  
Again, compared to Will, Jayden was entirely unphased though he put on airs that he was worried and suspicious. That was until they came across the booth Caleb was in. The blonde’s current state didn’t elicit a reaction, it was hardly the first time he had seen another drugged. Usually he was the one doing the drugging. The man _touching_ the blond, however, immediately caused him to march forward without thinking.  
  
Glasses went and fell every which way when Jayden nearly tackled the man into the booth, one hand gripping his neck in a vice while the other hand took hold of the man’s wrist, forcing his hand away from Caleb and up above him.  
  
“What is it that you think you’re doing?” He said in a slow, icy whisper, his gaze far darker as he glared at the man. Not long after speaking, head tilted just slightly as he just looked at the stranger, studying his expression carefully as he waited for a response.

* * *

_“Sounds nicer than ‘babysitting’”_

“If you’re not opposed to slumming it,” Will answered with a small smile, glad to have some silver lining to an otherwise grim night. “I can think of a nicer word than chaperoning,” he said without elaborating.

Heading upstairs had left Will uneasy for a number of reasons. For one, he had a reasonable guess as to what they’d find. That and he was still on high alert expecting the Midnight Killer to spring out of the shadows at them. Idly, Will had to wonder if this was the sort of place where a murder could hypothetically take place.

When Jayden reacted to the scene in the booth, Will gave a surprised shout followed by a string of muttered profanities. There was a surge in soft murmurs from the other patrons, many of which seemed disinterested in getting involved. Caleb, meanwhile, blinked slowly and looked from the scattered and broken glasses up to where Jayden and his assailant were interlocked.

_“What is it that you think you’re doing?” _

The man who had drugged Caleb blathered a number of excuses. The first excuse was something along the lines that they were just talking, which was easily disproved by Caleb’s drugged state and the faint mouth-sized bruises along the blond’s neck. Failing that, the excuses fell to the notion that Caleb was to blame for all of this. In the end, the man fell back on the excuse that Caleb hadn’t said ‘no.’

In the chaos, Caleb blinked once again, the feeling of time slowing down was ever-present as he watched Jayden. It was strange seeing him like this, though a moment later his drugged brain was more concerned about how warm his skin felt and how he wanted to cool down. Before Caleb could try to speak or move, Will was at his side.

Through it all, Will had felt a range of emotions from fear, disgust, anger, and relief that they’d found Caleb in time. He didn’t want to think what might have happened if they’d waited until morning for his tantrum to die down. Focusing on Caleb, Will moved to try to pull him to his feet, while haphazardly holding the discarded coat and book.

“Jayden,” Will said, worry etched in the single utterance, “we need to go.”

* * *

The man would give a deluge of excuses, each worse than the last. The entire time Jayden kept him held in place, refusing to move and looking dangerously close to escalating things further.  
  
He wasn’t sure how much time spent listening to the man’s blabbering, but after hearing a familiar voice behind him asking that they needed to leave he was brought back to reality. Rather than immediately getting and off of him, however, he started patting him down and fished through his pockets until he found his wallet. Pulling that out he rifled through it quickly until he came across the man’s ID card.  
  
“I’ll see to it that you’ll never work in this town again,” he said calmly, scanning the card as he did, then casually pocketed it. Without another word, he finally got up and then casually led the way out as if nothing had even happened.

* * *

_“I’ll see to it that you’ll never work in this town again”_

  
Will had been worried things might escalate and he had a feeling neither Caleb or Jayden wanted this incident to find its way into a police report, or worse, a headline. Thankfully, things didn’t escalate into further violence and with Jayden leading the way out, Will was quick to follow after him with Caleb in tow.  
  
Caleb did his best to stay awake while keeping his feet under him. Will had done his best to get Caleb’s arms into his coat sleeves before basically pulling Caleb’s arms around Will’s own shoulders. With the much-coveted autograph book tucked under his free arm, Will guided Caleb along as they navigated down the stairs.  
  
Once they were back in the public space downstairs, Will felt his face flush when other students he recognized caught sight of them. He hoped this wouldn’t make its way into the rumor mill, but it was hard to be sure. Regardless, he had to get Caleb home before the night could get any worse.  
  
“Will, my skin feels weird,” Caleb uttered once they were outside in the much colder air. “It’s too warm.”  
  
“Well, if you’re talking you’re probably not dying,” Will sighed while awkwardly trying to get his keys.

* * *

Jayden remained silent until they were back outside. The cool air and general silence were pretty refreshing after that whole entire deal back in the club. “He always this self-destructive?” He eventually said, glancing over at Will, his pacing far slower now so that the pair could keep up more easily.  
  
“Can’t say I understand the point of this. There’s a clear threat out here tonight and the first thing he decides to do, on top of everything else the two of you have already done, is heading over to a club and making an even bigger mess of things,” he shook his head, then crossed his arms. “And with some stranger too, tch.”

* * *

_“He always this self-destructive?”_

  
“Sometimes,” Will replied while Caleb grumbled something unintelligible. “Usually when he feels like he has something to prove, come to think of it.”  
  


_“And with some stranger too, tch”_

  
“Recorder,” Caleb said a little louder as Will manhandled him into the backseat. “Pocket, still recording.” Once Caleb was seatbelted into his seat, Will felt along his coat and retrieved his audio recorder. “Daddy’s not the only case I’m working on,” he said, slumping lower into his seat.  
  
“Huh,” Will stopped the recording, noting that it was close to running out of space to record. “I...don’t think I want to know what’s on this,” he said, placing it back into Caleb’s pocket.  
  
Going around to the driver’s side, Will got in, buckled up, and looked determined to get home and stay there for the night. Tonight had been too eventful, he’d expected a call back from Abigail and that had been it, instead, they got disaster after disaster.  
  
“Thanks, again, by the way,” Will said, looking to Jayden. “I know dealing with us is shaping up to be a lot of trouble...”

* * *

“Pass,” Jayden said quickly the moment the subject of the recorder came up. He kept his comments to himself, though he did shake his head again. To him, it just seemed to be another case of sloppy investigative work.  
  
Considering Caleb was in the back that time, he was left with no choice but to get into the front. After getting himself situated he just let out a low huff and leaned his head back against the headrest with his eyes closed.  
  
“Not sure what you’re talking about,” he stated, clearly sarcastic. “Most eventful evening in ages, clearly worth tabling my entire fucking schedule,” he let out a second huff to try and calm himself down just a bit, at least enough to keep himself from getting too snarky. “But,” He said after a pause. “I’d say it was worth in the end. That was no Midnight Killer, but still stopped something that I would have ended up regretting had I not been here,” he frowned. “Then again, that probably wouldn’t have even happened had I not been here…”

* * *

_“Most eventful evening in ages, clearly worth tabling my entire fucking schedule”_

  
Will flinched, having forgotten over the course of the night that Jayden did have other obligations and commitments outside of them. Once more, Caleb grumbled something unintelligible, but in the end, opted to press his face against the cool glass of the window. Between the two of them, for different reasons, they were wondering if involving Jayden in any of this was a good idea or if they were just wasting his time.  
  


_“Then again, that probably wouldn’t have even happened had I not been here…”_

  
“You’re making it out like what happened was your fault,” Will sighed while driving. “Even if the Midnight Killer didn’t do anything tonight, I did feel better about the whole thing with you here.”  
  
Arriving back at the house, Will prepared himself for having to drag Caleb inside and up to their room. Caleb himself was only half aware of what was going on at this point and looked ready to pass out. Getting out, Will proceeded to do what he could about moving Caleb, though it was a slow and tedious process made worse by the slippery walkway. Once the door was open and everyone inside, Will elected to drag Caleb to the couch and leave him there before coming back to lock and bolt the door.

* * *

Jayden just shrugged his shoulders indifferent at the response and continued to recline in the chair in silence with his eyes closed for the rest of the trip.

When they did finally arrive, he headed out of the jeep first and unlocked the door for the two, keeping it held open as Will helped Caleb back inside. When everything was eventually settled, he handed the keys over to Will and then quickly fell into a nearby armchair considering that Caleb now took his original spot on the couch.

“You ought to get some rest yourself,” Jayden said, at that point settled and fiddling once again with his phone. “After all of that, you ought to be the most exhausted out of the three of us”

* * *

_“After all of that, you ought to be the most exhausted out of the three of us”_

  
“It’s a good thing I have really bad insomnia anyway,” Will said while taking a seat beside Caleb, then reaching down to run his fingers through the blond’s hair.  
  
Caleb had essentially lost consciousness at this point and as relieved as Will was they were home and safe, he was still plagued by ‘what ifs.’ Watching the steady rise and fall of Caleb’s chest, Will made an effort to turn him on his side. It took more effort than he would have liked, but he didn’t want Caleb to drown in his own vomit if it came to that.  
  
“I don’t know what he was drugged with,” Will intoned while standing, “I doubt it’s lethal, but...if you could make sure he doesn’t keel over during the night, I think I might go ahead and try to get some sleep myself.”  
  
Heading to the stairs, Will paused briefly at the base of them, then glanced over at Jayden.  
  
“By the way, I think ‘dating’ is a better word than ‘chaperoning,’ he said, referring to what he’d almost commented earlier. “But...that’s such an embarrassing thing to say all things considered,” feeling color rising in his cheeks, Will decided now was the time to go upstairs before he said something more absurd. “Anyway, goodnight.”

* * *

Again Jayden shrugged. Whatever Caleb was forced to take didn’t look lethal, but there was definitely the chance that he’d end up throwing up overnight. At the very least, it certainly didn’t look like any of the stuff he used to poison his own victims, that stuff at least never caused nausea. That said, it wasn’t really something he could explain to Will as that wasn’t knowledge he was supposed to have in the first place.  
  
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep watch,” he said without bothering to look up from his phone.  
  
The next thing Will said, however, gave him pause, frowning he locked his phone then looked up and over at him before he managed to scurry off. “Whoa… whoa… whoa… You’re not saying something like that and sneaking away,” Jayden responded, now sitting upright and keeping his gaze trained solely on Will. “Come here.”

* * *

_Whoa… whoa… whoa… You’re not saying something like that and sneaking away” … “Come here”_

  
Some way, somehow, Will was sure his face had managed to go several shades redder when Jayden responded. Going still, Will looked ready to bolt regardless of what Jayden wanted him to do. Biting his lip, Will wondered just how many more mistakes would be made before morning.  
  
After a moment of hesitating, Will slowly made his way back over to Jayden. With how the night had gone so far, he didn’t want to leave Jayden with additional reasons to be unhappy with them. Still, in the present moment, Will wanted to take back what he’d said, or write it off as a joke, or even self-deprecating go into every detailed reason why what he’d said was a bad idea.  
  
“I’m here,” he said, going for humor but falling flat when he found himself standing in front of Jayden. “I’m sorry, it was a stupid thing to say.”

* * *

“No, it wasn’t,” the man said simply, noting that Will was suddenly trying to find a way to back out of the current situation. Jayden then just shook his head and stood up himself. “Lot of stupid shit happened tonight, that isn’t one of them.”  
  
Far calmer about things, he moved closer, without any hurry or rush, until he was standing before Will as well. Their bodies pressing against each other at that point, he just smiled as he looked down at the younger man’s flushed expression. There was a bit of amusement in his gaze, however, he didn’t comment on Will’s reaction to things, figuring that he’d spare him further embarrassment.  
  
“So we’re dating now, eh?” He said, the smile slowly forwarding into a bit of a smug smirk at that point. “Well… since we’re ‘dating’ I would say that you should sleep down here in my arms rather than upstairs all alone…” He said softly, his face inching closer. “...also, since we’re ‘dating’....” As he continued, he gently wrapped an arm around Will’s waist and pulled him closer against himself. “...then I should be able to hold you instead of just thinking about it…” He continued, face still inching closer, his voice falling to just barely above a whisper. “...and…. If we’re ‘dating’ then there shouldn’t be any problem with me doing something like this.”  
  
Without any further words, he finally closed the distance between the two of them and captured Will’s lips with his own.

* * *

_“Lot of stupid shit happened tonight, that isn’t one of them”_

  
It took all of Will’s willpower to remain in place when Jayden came to stand in front of him as well. The smug smirk on the older man’s face also made it difficult not to look away or fidget. In a way, Will couldn’t help but think back to their first meeting and how awkward and out of his element he’d felt then too.  
  


_“If we’re ‘dating’ then there shouldn’t be any problem with me doing something like this”_

  
While Jayden spoke, Will couldn’t help but think of every single reason why this was a bad idea. For one, there was currently a homicidal maniac after Will who had a weirdly possessive streak if his messages were anything to go by. As Jayden pulled him in closer, Will worried that this might put the artist in danger. With their faces inches apart, the reasons only grew. Will was a student at the university Jayden was trying to become a professor at, they operated and lived in completely different social spheres, Will’s own history itself was a deterrent for most, and then there was Caleb.  
  
Feeling as if he were under a trance, Will couldn’t bring himself to voice the many reasons the two of them dating was a bad idea. When he felt Jayden’s lips against his own, he found he didn’t want to give Jayden a single reason to change his mind about this.  
  
For a moment, Will didn’t move or react. Then, as soon as he registered what happened, what was still happening, he deepened the kiss. Pressing in against Jayden and moving to rest his hands on the artist’s shoulders Will couldn’t be bothered to think about anything outside of the moment.

* * *

Jayden was slow at first, gentle. In part for Will’s sake, noting his initial hesitation to all of this. Also in part, because he was still playing a role. He needed to be charming and considerate, both patient and disciplined…  
  
...Alas, the moment Will deepened the kiss his mind completely blanked out. The careful plots and schemes that were so carefully and meticulously crafted inside of his calculating brain temporarily fell into tatters at that moment.  
  
Without further thought or consideration, his kissing became far more aggressive. His lips parted eagerly, his tongue pushing its way forward to meet with Will’s, wrestling against it as deep, low moan erupted from his throat.  
  
As they continued, Jayden’s grip around Will became stronger, rougher, guiding them both slowly backward toward the armchair until he suddenly tripped and fell down into it, briefly breaking the embraced. He scoffed a bit at the parting, then quickly pulled Will back down on top of him and captured his lips hungrily once more. Both hands quickly reached around Will once more. One, again, around his waist while the other trailed back and forth along his back before it sneakily dipped beneath his shirt and started to feel against the warm skin underneath.

* * *

The sudden shift into something more aggressive caught Will off guard for a moment. The moment passed quickly though as Will adapted. He supposed, after witnessing the brief altercation earlier, that under the right circumstances Jayden could be more aggressive. Will decided, after everything so far, that he didn’t mind it.

Feeling Jayden’s lips part, Will smiled into the kiss before opening his own mouth. Caught up in the kiss, Will barely noticed as the grip around him changed and the sensation of being guided backward seemed inconsequential. The feeling of Jayden tripping startled Will, but only for a moment when the embrace was broken. Catching his breath, Will let out a breathy laugh before Jayden pulled him down after him and caught his lips again.

So far Will had no complaints about kissing, the added and unexpected intensity hadn’t even bothered him. With one hand at his waist, Will felt secure, safe even. The sensation of another hand creeping up under his shirt sent a shiver down his spine and for a moment Will went still.

In the heat of the moment, Will hadn’t been sure how far he wanted this to go. Now though, with a hand under his shirt feeling his bare skin, he had to wonder if here and now was the right place for anything beyond making out. Groaning softly into the kiss, Will reluctantly pulled back, freeing his mouth to draw in air. For a moment, he looked as if he wanted to say something, but didn’t want to disrupt the mood. After a moment, he moved to place his palms against Jayden’s chest, a thoughtful look on his face all the while.

“I don’t know how far you want to take this,” Will murmured finally.

* * *

Jayden continued as he did without the slightest care, his hand slowly continuing its way up along Will’s back, forcing his shirt to ride a bit higher as he did. However, in response to his actions, he also felt Will grow still. He paused at that point and just laid back and continued lazily meeting Will’s lips until once more the two of them were forced apart.  
  
Two entirely conflicting answers came to mind the moment he heard Will’s comment. He thought over them both for a moment, his chest taking in deep huffs of air as he did. Eventually, he just chuckled. “Nothing more than this,” he said, gently rubbing along Will’s back as he did.  
  
“Promise,” he winked. "Plenty of other opportunities in the future for you to enjoy the rest of me"

* * *

_“Nothing more than this” _

  
Will seemed to almost melt against Jayden when he got his answer. He hadn't been sure himself how far he was willing to go, nevermind the fact that Caleb was asleep on the couch nearby. That and he felt like there was a conversation or two that needed to be had before they dove headfirst into whatever this was between them.  
  


_“Promise” ... "Plenty other opportunities in the future for you to enjoy the rest of me"_

  
The heat in Will's cheeks persisted at the implications of what Jayden was saying. Right now though, he was content enough to leave the rest of his thoughts and worries for the future. For now, the long day was finally catching up to him and the thought of falling asleep in Jayden's arms sounded like the best idea anyone had had all night.  
  
"If you don't mind," Will said, relaxing further into Jayden's embrace, "I think I might actually need more rest than I thought."  
  
Rearranging himself, Will settled into a somewhat more comfortable position in Jayden's lap. He wasn't entirely sure if it was ideal for falling asleep, but rest and sleep weren't synonymous and he didn't like the idea of them leaving Caleb downstairs by himself.  
  
"By the way," he said after a minute, "I believe this means I'm owed coffee."

* * *

Jayden just grinned as he continued to watch Will’s expressions, not adding in much else to his little comment.  
  
“Fine with me. I’ll still be keeping watch over things,” the man then said with a nod as he felt Will start to relax a bit. Briefly he let go, removing both hands and raising them upward for a bit to given Will the room he needed to make himself more comfortable. Once he had gotten himself settled, he wrapped an arm around his shoulders and kept him held securely against himself while his other hand reached over for his phone again.  
  
“And I believe this means you’re no longer too busy with finals anymore,” he responded back jokingly then quickly leaned downward and placed a gentle kiss atop his head before he relaxed a bit more himself. “How grateful I am that you’ve finally decided to make the time for me in your busy, _busy_ schedule,” he continued, laughing quite a bit as he did.

* * *

_“Fine with me. I’ll still be keeping watch over things” _

  
The added bonus to all of this, coffee aside, was the added feeling of being safe. Later on, Will might worry about the Midnight Killer and the possibility that Jayden might be in danger. Right now though, Will was confident nothing would happen over the course of the night.  
  


_“And I believe this means you’re no longer too busy with finals anymore” _

  
Will’s eyes had gently closed for a moment, then blinked open at the statement. A moment later, he recalled the text and his attempt at keeping things between them at an arm’s length. Feeling somewhat called out, he pressed the side of his face in closer to Jayden’s shoulder to hide how red in the face he was.  
  


_“How grateful I am that you’ve finally decided to make the time for me in your busy, busy schedule” _

  
“I’m still busy,” Will huffed, willing the color in his face to fade as Jayden laughed. “Finals usually mean I’m going to be drinking my weight in coffee as it is,” he murmured. “If you’re fine with me studying over coffee it should all work out great.”

* * *

“Fine with me,” Jayden responded with a slight hunch of the shoulders. “Doubt I’d be able to help with those studies of yours, but I got the good stuff when it comes to coffee. Nice view as well, very quiet, think you’ll enjoy it,” he paused for a moment, thinking. “And, just throwing this out there, if you’d like to stay over you can see my culinary skills at work. Though, no guarantees on the quality of the finished project,” he said, chuckling lightly. Cooking wasn’t exactly his forte, largely in part due to never having a need to cook. However, he figured he could make an attempt this one time.  
  
  
“Think all of our other meetings were either awkward or strictly business, it would be nice to have one that’s quiet and peaceful,” he next said. “If we want to take things further we can do that if we want to just keep it slow and hash things out can do that as well. And if it turns out this was a mistake and the two of us just got caught up in the heat of the moment, well…” He grinned and gently tightened his hold around Will. “I wouldn’t be the one calling something as nice as this a mistake.”

* * *

_“Though, no guarantees on the quality of the finished project”_

  
“I think the company’s more important than the venue,” was Will’s immediate reply. “I can help with cooking if you’re worried about burning your place down,” he continued, drowsily, but with a hint of amusement. “I kind of had to learn how early on.”  
  


_“I wouldn’t be the one calling something as nice as this a mistake”_

  
Will couldn’t help the quiet laugh that escaped passed his lips at Jayden’s observation of their previous encounters. Awkward was one way of putting it, but Will was sure he’d be more comfortable in a private location than somewhere public or crowded. That and there was the added bonus that Jayden wasn’t rushing him into doing anything he didn’t want to do just yet.  
  
“I don’t want anything to happen to you,” Will admitted, feeling closer and closer to sleep. “There are other things I’m worried about, but...that can wait until morning.”

* * *

“Nothing’s going to happen to any of us,” Jayden whispered back, sounding awfully confident. “You’ll see.”  
  
That said, he then turned his attention fully to his phone and started quietly responding to any texts of business inquiries or plans that he’d been putting off up until that point.  
  
  
Jayden waited until he felt Will’s breathing start to slow, then gently confirmed that he dozed off. Once he did, he then shifted a bit. Putting his phone off to the side, he moved as best he could to retrieve the ID card he had taken from the stranger before leaving the club.  
  
He just glared and seethed in silence at the face staring back at him, as if looks alone were capable of killing the man. After an unknown amount of time, he set it off to the side then pulled out his phone again and got to work doing some preliminary research on him. He wouldn’t need to make any plans or arrangements for this one, he wasn’t deserving of being immortalized. Unlike the others, he’d just make him disappear. Completely forgotten by the rest of the world.  
  
After a while, he paused and then glanced over at Caleb, both to double-check on his state and think over things further. Will was one thing, so long as he kept up appearances he’d have him wrapped around his finger without much trouble. Caleb, on the other hand, was more difficult. He was more of a wildcard, a quality he didn’t personally care for. It didn’t help either that the two of them didn’t gel well when he had his facade up.  
  
His brows furrowed as he thought over just how to deal with him. Ideas came to mind, but none of them he particularly liked. All too risky.  
  
Then again, maybe a bit of risk was something that he needed.

* * *

_“Nothing’s going to happen to any of us” ...“You’ll see”_   


Will heard Jayden's reassurance of their safety, but he wasn't sure if he believed it. As he fell asleep, he was content for the moment knowing that they were all safe from the Midnight Killer and all the other dangers outside.  
  
Regardless of his usual problem with insomnia, Will wouldn't stir through the rest of the night unless moved. It might have been sheer exhaustion or a combination of that and the emotional rollercoaster he'd been on since discovering Abigail's corpse. Caleb, meanwhile, was mostly still but was more drugged than truly asleep.  
  
Eventually, as the drug presumably began to wear off, Caleb would shift around in his sleep. Seemingly unhappy with being on his side, he flopped over onto his back, then seemed to mutter something under his breath in response to something he may have been dreaming about. There were still hours left before morning and neither Will or Caleb seemed inclined to wake up just yet.


	11. The Morning After I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Jayden has a few opinions about Caleb's approach.

For the rest of the night, Jayden was mostly left to his own thoughts. He had no intention of doing anything else, and even if he didn’t he couldn’t considering that Will was still laying against him.  
  
By the time early morning rolled around he let out a wide yawn and relaxed fully back against the chair, both eyes closed to let them rest as he wavered back and forth between going drifting off to sleep himself.  
  
He definitely planned to get in a nap when he returned home. After that, he’d figured out how to navigate which of the day’s social obligations were actually important to him. Then there was still him needing to return to Abigail’s a third time to ensure the duo didn’t miss anything. That thought, in particular, caused him to groan. He took great pride in his set-ups, was always great at covering his tracks. Never did he have to go back to double-check things or make revisions. Yet here he was. He included the two and now he couldn’t help but second-guess the state of things.  
  
When the sun had risen Jayden was still conscious… more or less. He was resting against the chair just vaguely aware of things, though his mind wandered every which way and remained quite a bit unfocused due to his own exhaustion.

* * *

Eventually, as daylight began to filter in through the cracks in the blinds and curtains, Caleb started to wake up. First, he just opened his eyes, then closed then and threw his forearm over his face. Then, unable to fall back asleep, he sighed and shifted around until his back was to Will and Jayden. His head was throbbing, the inside of his mouth had a weird taste to it, and Caleb could faintly recall bits and pieces of the previous night.  
  
After he'd left, Caleb had been unsure what he wanted to do, knowing he needed to calm down after how worked up he'd gotten. His original plan was to find someplace still open at that hour, get something to drink, and wait it out until Will came to collect him. At the time, it seemed like the best option, rather than exploding or arguing with Jayden and making things worse on purpose. When he'd arrived, he hadn't even planned on getting drunk, he'd ordered a coke and had been flipping through the autograph book when he'd felt another's presence slide up beside him.  
  
To any onlookers who happened to be watching when Caleb had walked in, they'd have noticed he was distraught, alone, and not paying much attention to those around him. Caleb knew the stories and had seen the reports of allegations about illicit activity, but he hadn't been thinking at the time. A month or so prior, he had wanted to do an investigation of the place but knew the owners would never allow it. When a strange older man approached him, then offered to go somewhere more private to 'talk,' Caleb had recklessly seen it as an opportunity. However, he hadn't been thinking straight or paying attention to what he'd been drinking.  
  
Laying on the couch now, Caleb recalled bits and pieces and knew well enough he had fucked up. If Will hadn't gotten Jayden to come to his rescue Caleb _knew _what would have happened to him. Feeling his eyes getting misty, Caleb furiously wiped at his face with his sleeve. If he was ever going to get a wake-up call about his safety, this was likely it.  
  
After a moment of trying to collect himself, Caleb sat up and moved around until he was facing Will and Jayden. Eyebrows raised at the positioning and for the briefest of seconds, Caleb thought back to finding Abigail's body. Shaking his head, Caleb got up and approached. Eyeing the pair for a long moment, Caleb didn't seem the least concerned that most people might find what he was doing creepy. Casually, after a good minute or so, he reached out and prodded at Jayden's shoulder.  
  
Glancing at the time on a battered old clock on the wall, Caleb reached out and gave Will a light shake. They did have things to do today, Midnight Killer or not, finals were still coming up. Looking back over at Jayden, Caleb thought back to their last actual interaction and then to how Jayden had reacted when they'd found Caleb. With a sigh, he _guessed_ eventually he'd have to say something, though he was on the fence if he was aiming to apologize or thank Jayden.  
  
"Will, get up," he said in a loud whisper, still shaking Will.  
  
Seconds passed and Will groaned but began to move. Realizing he was asleep in Jayden's lap and that it was morning, he jolted a little.

* * *

At being poked Jayden opened one eye slowly, his gaze a bit unfocused he glanced around a bit aimlessly before focusing directly on Caleb. He groaned a bit then closed his eyes again and let out a wide yawn. “See… nothing to it,” he said lowly. His voice sleepy, almost dreamlike in his current state. “Nothing happened all night just like I said...”  
  
He slowly unwrapped his arms from around Will and raised them up into a firm stretch, letting out a second yawn as he did. Afterward, he just collapsed back exhausted against the chair again, both hands hanging off to each side lazily as he tried gathering his thoughts through his sleep-addled mind.  
  
Jayden then glanced sideways to the table at the side where his phone now rest, the ID card laid underneath. He reached over aimlessly, his hand tapping at various parts of the table before he managed to get hold of his phone and bring it back before him. “...What time is it…?”

* * *

_“See… nothing to it” ... “Nothing happened all night just like I said...”_

  
Taking a seat on the arm of the couch, Caleb would just wait for Will and Jayden to wake up. The pressure in his head hadn't let up and he could feel a throbbing in time with his heartbeat and Caleb was sure that if he was anyone else he might have been in agony right now. Instead, he didn't seem even a little worse for wear after the events of the previous night.  
  
"All thanks to our knight in not-so-shining armor," Caleb quipped, though to be fair Jayden _had _come to his rescue the previous night, a fact Caleb had to begrudgingly admit. "Congratulations, Sir Mattis, you've singlehandedly thwarted the dreaded Midnight Killer and while asleep too."  
  
As much as he joked about it, Caleb couldn't be sure if Jayden's presence, or a third person, had been a deterrent that kept the Midnight Killer away. With that in mind, he waited as Will blinked his eyes open a few times, rubbed at them, and seemed adamant about nuzzling in against Jayden while the older man stretched. It should have irritated Caleb, he thought, to see Will like this with someone else, but instead, it left him curious if not confused.  
  


_“...what time is it…?”_

  
"Time for you to get a watch," Caleb airily commented while Jayden retrieved his phone. Casually, while Jayden went for the phone, Caleb eyed the ID before reaching for it. "I see I'm not the only one keeping souvenirs."  
  
Will, meanwhile, was more alert now and squirmed around to try to disentangle himself from Jayden. As much as he wanted to bask in the feeling of warmth and safety, they did have things to do and Will could only imagine how packed Jayden's schedule might be.

* * *

“Asleep? I was awake all night,” Jayden said, withholding a groan as he single-handed unlocked his phone and double-checked his schedule for the day. “No suspicious noises, no attempts at a break-in,” he glanced over sideways at Caleb. “No unfortunate incidents where you attempted to drown in your own vomit.”  
  
From Caleb he turned his attention back down to Will and chuckled lightly. It was unfortunate that he had to leave when he found the younger man’s affection charming. If anything it made him want to hold him longer and drift off to sleep in that armchair rather than returning back to his suite alone.  
  
“And you need to wake up. You know how to reach me if you want to continue things,” he said as he waited for Will to move. “Or, I’ll reach you. Think there’s an evening or two I can spare in the upcoming week.”  
  
After Will managed to get up, Jayden followed suit not long afterward. Back on his legs, he stretched again, grunting a bit as he did, then casually moved over to one side and swiped the ID card out from Caleb’s hand. “Think there’s a key difference between stealing valuable evidence from a crime scene and relieving a potential rapist of his ID card,” he said. “I’m going to ask about him, find any rumors. Then I’ll be filing a report with the police.”

* * *

_”No unfortunate incidents where you attempted to drown in your own vomit.”_

  
Caleb's face flushed a shade deeper when Jayden reminded him of his predicament. He thought to complain, or protest that he'd needed help at all, but he knew he'd be lying to himself if he tried. Besides, he didn't want to start an argument here and now, not when the morning was relatively peaceful.

_  
"Think there’s an evening or two I can spare in the upcoming week”_.

  
"Sure, I'm sure I can make time in my _terribly _busy schedule," Will murmured, a small smile playing across his lips. "I'll keep you updated if anything odd happens," he added, knowing that if the Midnight Killer was after them it'd make sense to keep someone else aware of the situation.  
  


_“Then I’ll be filing a report with the police.”_

  
When the ID Caleb had been examining was swiped out of his hands, he frowned up at Jayden, looking mildly put off. He opened his mouth to protest, to complain even, but instead closed it with a frown. He wanted to point out how the crime scene would have looked downright silly with the artist's note being outdated by the time the police arrived. A moment later, his frown deepened at the realization that by now there was little indicating that Abigail's death was even a Midnight Killer murder. The scene they had come across in their second visit just looked like an empty, sad apartment with a dead woman on the couch. In a moment of clarity, Caleb realized that they may have accidentally stripped away anything linking the murder to the Midnight Killer by taking the book.  
  
"But..." Caleb started, then trailed off, knowing by now Jayden would never agree on anything pertaining to the Midnight Killer. "You're not telling the police I was almost the victim, are you?" He asked, determined to have little to do with the cops regardless of whether he was a victim or not.  
  
Will, meanwhile, had since wandered off in a zombie-like daze into the kitchen to throw together something for breakfast.

* * *

Jayden nodded to Will, the smile on his face as he watched his slowly leave and drift off into the kitchen.  
  
The smile, however, would vanish when it was just him and Caleb. Turning back to the blond, he folded his arms firmly with a more serious look cross his face. “They’ll likely need a witness statement over what goes on in that VIP section of theirs,” Jayden said at first, his voice trailing a bit. “I can ask around, maybe find some people who could give a statement themselves. If I’m lucky I might even be able to have a little discussion with the owners,” he said at first then paused a bit.  
  
“I won’t bring your name up...” He said initially clearly signaling that there would be a catch. “...On the grounds that you don’t go out wandering off to do another ‘investigation’...” He then said. “No more trips to Abigail’s, no more ruining crime scenes, no more stealing evidence, no more getting roofied at a bar in a poor attempt to get a confession,” he said, stepping closer with each example. The warmth he showed with Will was long gone at that point, replaced by a demeanor that was far more firm and serious.  
  
“Your work is sloppy, amateurish,” he said, his words sounding as if he spoke from experience. “You keep this up I won’t even need to tell the police. You’ll just lead them to yourself.”

* * *

_"If I’m lucky I might even be able to have a little discussion with the owners.” _

  
Caleb didn't outwardly react to the shift in mood, though he didn't look all that happy with where things were going. He'd had a plan, sort of, but things had gone awry and out of his control too soon for it to have mattered. The audio recorder was still in his pocket and he _knew _there was evidence on it, enough to land the bar and anyone involved in what had happened in serious legal trouble. Still, he had to ask himself if putting himself in such a precarious situation had been worth it.  
  


_“No more trips to Abigail’s, no more ruining crime scenes, no more stealing evidence, no more getting roofied at a bar in a poor attempt to get a confession.” _

  
For a single fleeting second Caleb had been hopeful, only to hear a list of conditions attached to not being formally involved in what had happened at the bar. He didn't want anything to do with the police, he _really _didn't want all of this to get back to his parents, and worst of all he didn't want to _feel _like a victim. Distantly, Caleb heard the clatter of something drop in the kitchen and the faint sound of Will telling a frying pan to fuck off. It would have been funny if he wasn't already being confronted by a Jayden that was a far cry from the artist they'd become familiar with.  
  


_“You’ll just lead them to yourself.”_

  
Biting his tongue hard enough to taste copper, Caleb was at a loss. He didn't have a good rebuttal to everything Jayden was saying and that was somehow worse than the conditions attached to not having his name in a police report.  
  
"Okay, _fine_," Caleb conceded after a moment. "No more crime scenes," he said, though he supposed really this meant no more fieldwork. "I'll stick to analyzing scraps the police choose to make publically available, happy?"

* * *

Jayden wasn’t sure if Caleb would actually heed his words. Regardless of whether he did or not, he had no intention of bringing up his name whenever he decided to file a report against the club. That is… _if_ he decided to file a report against the club in the first place. He personally didn’t care one way or the other about the shadiness going on behind the scenes, his only issue was solely with the man who had touched Caleb.  
  
“Good boy," he said calmly, almost condescendingly so, even placing a hand atop of Caleb’s head and rubbed and petted him back and forth a couple of times for good measure. “Glad you can finally see things my way.”  
  
Jayden then backed off toward the hallway again, pocketing the ID card as he did.  
  
“I’ll let you two know if I come across anything regarding the theming committee. In the meantime, just focus on being a student,” he said as he started poking away at his phone to call for an Uber to take him back home. “It’s better this way. Someday you’ll understand.”

* * *

_“Good boy”_

  
Caleb was absolutely sure he could taste blood now with how hard he had bitten into his tongue to stop himself from saying anything to make matters worse. He flinched at the feeling of Jayden's hand on his head and would have swatted at it, if not for the fact that he'd kept his hands rigidly at his sides as his nails dug into his palms.  
  


_“Glad you can finally see things my way”_

  
A sharp exhale was Caleb's only response to that as he let go of the breath he'd been holding. He wasn't afraid, or even upset if anything he was pretty sure he was angry more than anything else. Watching Jayden pocket the ID, Caleb willed himself to calm down. Right then being angry would do nothing for himself or anyone else. If he learned nothing else from all of this, he'd at least come to the realization that his emotions and leaping before looking only got him into trouble.  
  


_“It’s better this way. Someday you’ll understand”_

  
"Will this be before or after someone else turns up dead?" He bit out through gritted teeth, unsure if their search was leading the Midnight Killer to potential victims or not. "I don't _want _to wait until someday to understand," he murmured, under his breath as he felt his shoulders slump.

* * *

Jayden hummed to himself without another word as he continued down the hall and made his way outside to wait for his ride. Ultimately he wasn’t too sure about the previous day. He had some wins and some drawbacks. Very weird considering that he was so used to everything going his way and going exactly as planned. Well, technically things were still going his way, just... not exactly as planned.  
  
As he proceeded to ponder over things he felt his thoughts start to drift and let out another yawn. He figured it was probably better for him to get some sleep rather than dwell and stress over things, in his current state he’d likely just get more paranoid over things. Luckily for him, he didn’t have to wait long for a car to pull up and carry him back on his way home.  
  
Jayden slowly got into the back seat and then promptly leaned against the window, eyes already starting to close as his body threatened to just pass out then and there. Instead however, he pulled out his phone and pulled up his text messages to Will.  
  
_‘Definitely not doing that again’_  
  
_‘Waking up early I mean’_  
  
_‘Already miss having you in my arms ❤️ ’_  
  
That done he locked his phone to wait for a response. However the moment he closed his eyes again he couldn’t help but drift off in silence.

* * *

After Jayden had left, Caleb slowly moved from the spot he'd been frozen to through the entire encounter. It had been odd, to say the least, seeing the older man like that. Then again, it vaguely reminded Caleb of the chilled demeanor Jayden had had when he'd rushed into his rescue the other night. It was almost unsettling, or rather it might be unsettling to anyone else, but it left Caleb confused and unsure.  
  
"I don't know what Will sees in him," Caleb muttered to himself after he heard the front door close.  
  
Eventually, Caleb wandered off to the kitchen and found Will organizing two plates of various breakfast foods. Watching for the doorway, Caleb couldn't help but notice how much lighter and at ease Will seemed. Will had always had a melancholic air about him and it had gotten worse over the last year or so, only to dissipate over one man they barely knew. Even with his own misgivings about Jayden, Caleb couldn't bring himself to say or do anything that might spoil this for Will.  
  
As far as Caleb was concerned, the world was ugly, but Will wasn't. The question now, Caleb pondered, was how serious Will was about Jayden or if he was only setting himself up for future heartbreak. To make matters worse, Caleb didn't want the vultures Jayden associated with anywhere near Will. While thinking about it, Caleb found himself at a loss. In this matter, he had no other option than to trust Jayden, as much as he hated to admit it.  
  
Both Will and Caleb were jolted out of their respective thoughts when Will's phone chimed three times, indicating three messages. The brunette picked up his phone and unlocked it, then read over the messages. Around this time, Caleb made himself known by walking over to the sink to pick up the plates and move them to the table.  
  


_‘Already miss having you in my arms ❤️ ’_

  
'Lol, could do it more often if we weren't so busy,' Will texted back, '💜 '  
  
After sending his text to Jayden, Will followed Caleb over to the table and the duo began eating. A few minutes of silence passed before Will sighed and set his fork aside, then looked across the table at Caleb.  
  
"What's wrong?" He asked, with a concerned look.  
  
"Nothing's wrong," Caleb replied immediately, only to get a skeptical eyebrow raise from Will. "Okay, so maybe a lot of things are wrong, but...you and Jayden?"  
  
"We're 'dating' I guess?" Will replied, "it's not like we're engaged or anything."  
  
"...Okay," Caleb sounded much more put off regardless. "So what about when the Midnight Killer finds out?"  
  
"To be entirely honest I'm not sure," Will conceded, "but I'm not going to live my life constantly afraid he's going to kill anyone I talk to... Have you thought about seeing anyone?"  
  
"My personality is a natural deterrent," Caleb retorted, shrugging, knowing he couldn't answer the question truthfully.  
  
"Maybe you should try?" Will pressed, "it's not like the Midnight Killer is going to jump out of the bushes to murder a random one night stand."  
  
Caleb shrugged and the duo went back to eating in silence. Eventually, they'd clean up, with Caleb insisting on doing the dishes while Will went upstairs to get ready for the day. Dishes done, and Will done with the bathroom, Caleb went ahead and took a shower before coming out and getting dressed. Once both of them were ready, they grabbed their school bags and keys before taking off for school.

* * *

Eventually, Jayden woke up to the frustrated yelling of his Uber driver. He stirred a bit, then suddenly bolted upright. A low groan left his lips as he glanced around him bewildered, wiping a bit of drool from his lips and chin with the back of his sleeve.  
  
“Right… sorry about that, busy night,” he scoffed then casually reached for his wallet and fished out a fifty to tip the driver so the delay he created. Without another word, he got out of the vehicle and steadily dragged himself into the lobby of his building. Briefly, he put on a fake smile as the staff and doormen greeted him, a smile that he kept right until he dragged himself to his elevator. He fumbled a bit to pull out his keys, then fumbled a bit more to insert it inside of a small socket off to the side before he was finally able to push the button that would lead him up to the top floor.  
  
Arriving he dragged himself to his side of the floor and once more fumbled with his keys to get the door open. Without much fanfare he slammed it shut behind him, letting it lock of its own, then made a beeline for his bedroom, barely managing to kick off both his shoes before he collapsed atop the mattress and passed out


	12. Dual Courting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Midnight Killer has a conversation with Caleb and Jayden with Will.

Jayden wouldn’t wake up until late afternoon. With a groan, he reached shuffled through his pockets to go through the various calls and texts he missed over the course of the day. Reading through them all but not entirely comprehending him he opted to toss his phone to one side and then quickly dragged himself to his kitchen to get himself some coffee.

It was sheerly by chance that he glanced over to his desk and toward one of the drawers. As the coffee brewed he made his way over and unlocked to take out his burner phone. After powering it back on he waited until he was able to check the status of the group chat, then raised a brow when he saw a message from Will out of the two of them.

“Had him worried sick,” he remarked quietly to himself. “Pity…”

As he made his way back toward the kitchen he finally started to draft a response.

‘My Caleb was acting out? Oh no…’’

‘And after I’ve made myself fully available too. This almost hurts’

‘Almost’

‘I’ll just tell myself that it was just sex’

‘Was it sex?’

‘Please tell me…’

‘I mean. that doesnt change anything’

‘it means nothing’

‘nothing at all'

‘This’

A pause

'It'

‘Still hurts’

‘Though’

‘’was it bad?’

‘please tell me it was bad’

‘if it was bad I’ll kill them for you’

‘I want to kill them for you’

* * *

_‘I want to kill them for you’_

  
Late in the afternoon, after one of their classes let out for the day, Will and Caleb had met in the student union for a late lunch while studying and working on any last-minute projects. It was at this time that they both received notifications indicating someone was messaging them. A surprised look was shared between them as they quickly realized whoever was texting them was texting the _both _of them. Knowing just who they were in a group chat with, they both scrambled for their phones.  
  
Will got his out of his jacket pocket first and began to scroll through the messages, his eyebrows shooting up as he passed each one. Caleb eventually dug his phone out where it had fallen to the bottom of his school bag. Reading over the messages, Caleb felt his pulse pick up and a shiver ran down his spine, though he wasn't sure if it was good or bad. For a moment, he wondered just how he might reply, only to pause before he could so much as type a single letter.  
  
This was his emotions and eagerness getting the better of him. This was the exact same thing that had landed him from bad to worse situations all last night. With some degree of hesitance, he set his phone aside and looked to Will.  
  
"What do we do?" Caleb asked, unusually demure.  
  
"...We should block the number, we definitely shouldn't text back, but..." Will trailed off, frowning.  
  
'Caleb's fine now,' Will texted, frowning, 'he was drugged, we found him, nothing happened.'  
  
On Caleb's end, he watched as Will's texts appeared on screen.  
  
'We're blocking this number now,' Will said, giving Caleb a hard stare as the blond reluctantly complied. 'Don't contact us again,' Will sent the last message off and then promptly blocked the number, though it bothered him it was still listed as private.  
  
"Are you going to tell Jayden?" Caleb asked, eyeing his phone.  
  
"Yeah, texting him now," Will replied as he went ahead and did just that.  
  
_'_TMK is texting us again,' Will sent this time to Jayden's number. 'We blocked him, but I doubt that'll put a stop to things. Just wanted to keep you in the loop. 💜 '

* * *

By the time he got a response, Jayden was casually lounging on one of his couch and sipping away on his coffee and he stared at the phone intently and awaited a response. It was a bit of a surprise to see a response from Will, in that that was the only response he had gotten. He wondered the reasoning behind, maybe Caleb was busy, maybe he was legitimately listening to the advice he had given.  
  
It all culminated to his phone getting blocked, to which he continued staring at the screen looking completely blank-faced.  
  
A couple of parts he had to pretend not to know about, but that was his genuine feeling about the situation…. And it got him blocked. But him getting blocked was likely his own doing. He wanted them out of the picture and not making a mess of things, and now they were out of the picture and not making a mess of things. This was exactly what he wanted. And yet…  
  
He sipped again at the coffee, still looking completely expressionless and devoid of emotion as he stared at the final text of him being blocked. Then without much fanfare, he slowly got up and then swiftly threw his coffee mug over to the wall. The glass would shatter instantly and splatter all across, and he just stood there and stared with the same blank expression.  
  
At that point, he had essentially won. The police were too incompetent to get a decent trace of him, and if the duo let themselves be reliant upon the scraps that the police revealed then they likely wouldn’t be able to find anything else. Until the city got their head out of their asses and finally decided to bring in the feds he was essentially free to do whatever the hell he wanted.  
  
“Tch. Guess I’ll have to clean that up,” he muttered to himself, and simply shook his head as he turned around and headed toward the bathroom to get in a shower.  
  
-  
  
‘Good call 🙂’  
  
He responded to Will as he got himself dressed.  
  
‘Sounds like someone deserves a reward 😜’  
  
Being blocked was irritating, but an easy problem to circumvent. There were so many different ways to spoof numbers with various apps, modifications, and settings that getting blocked was really more of a road bump than anything else. The real annoyance was getting blocked repeatedly.  
  
By the time Jayden was dressed in his usual business wear and out in out and about it was later in the evening, the sky already darkening. Sitting once again in the back of an Uber he headed one final time to Abigail’s place as he fiddled around with his burner phone. This time around there was no group chat, he texted Caleb specifically.  
  
**_‘Blocked’_**  
  
Another text cropped up, the number was again listed as private.  
  
‘Disappointing. But I understand’  
  
‘Almost’  
  
A pause.  
  
‘So it was a bad night after all’  
  
‘Good’  
  
‘Daddy's going to fix this’

* * *

_‘Good call 🙂'_

  
‘Hopefully,’ Will replied a moment later.  
  


_‘Sounds like someone deserves a reward 😜’_

  
‘🤔 Who might this ‘someone’ be? Whoever they are, I’m sure they deserve a nice reward.’ Sending that text off, Will pondered if he’d made the best decision all things considered. ‘Real talk tho, would you happen to have those security system recommendations?’ A pause, ‘I’m worried blocking him might piss him off.’

  
~~~

  
  
Caleb and Will finished up at the student union, both with their lunch, studying, and socializing with a few friends and acquaintances that happened to be there as well. By the end of it all, Caleb was left wondering if Jayden and Will had been correct with their respective pieces of advice. Perhaps putting his safety before any thrills was the best choice and maybe getting out and finding someone to take his mind off of the Midnight Killer was better than wistfully wishing he could unblock the number.  
  
Eventually, they both went home as the sun began to set and while Will was busying himself downstairs with whatever task caught his interest, Caleb had gone upstairs. He’d insisted he didn’t feel too well, claiming a mix of nerves and stress before he disappeared into their shared room. Flopping onto his bed, Caleb stared up at the pinned butterfly over his bed. The sound of his phone buzzing caught his attention and after a depressing moment of silence, he checked it.  
  


_‘Daddy's going to fix this’_

  
The sight of the private number made his heart skip a beat and upon reading the texts, Caleb’s heart was racing. It wasn’t racing from fear, rather what he felt was something closer to excitement. Still, he thought back to Jayden and Will and after a moment, reminded himself that this was a private chat, Will wouldn’t know and therefore Jayden wouldn’t either.  
  
‘I’m not allowed to talk to you,’ Caleb sent after a moment, though he made no move to block the number.

* * *

‘A nice, big reward… 😏’  
  
Jayden texted back to Will later on in the evening, taking out his second phone.  
  
‘Lol. I actually do, I got some business to finish up on my end. I’ll call later on’  
  
‘Don’t live in a house myself so going solely on a friend’s recommendation here. From what he’s saying though this thing’s the real deal’  
  
Right when he hit send he felt a buzz from his throwaway and picked that up as well. He glanced curiously at Caleb’s message and grinned.  
  
'k'  
  
‘you’re mine though’  
  
‘Im the only one that can ground you’  
  
A pause.  
  
‘tell me who drugged you’

* * *

_‘A nice, big reward… 😏’_

  
‘🤔 I wonder what it could be...’ Will texted while taking a break from reading over one of his textbooks at the dining room table. ‘Lol 😛.’  
  


_‘From what he’s saying though this thing’s the real deal’_

  
‘Okay, ttyl then,’ Will replied, glad to have something to go off of in terms of keeping the house secure. ‘😘💜.’  
  
With his messages sent, Will turned his attention back to his school work and laptop. Eventually, he might take a break and heat up leftovers from the night before, but for now, he was content with preparing for the start of exams the following week.

  
  
~~~

  
  
Upstairs, Caleb was conflicted. He knew the smart thing would be to block the new number and failing that, ignore the texts he was getting regardless. His resolve crumbled quickly, however, upon the realization that he could talk to the Midnight Killer and no one could stop him. It was stupid, it was childish, but he couldn’t help but feel vindicated after what had happened with Jayden that morning.  
  


_‘you’re mine though’_

‘I’m not yours,’ Caleb texted back, frowning a little even as his face flushed red.  
  


_‘Im the only one that can ground you’_

  
He couldn’t deny the second statement, so he ignored it. Will hadn’t been entirely wrong in the fact that the Midnight Killer was the only one Caleb actually listened to out of everyone they’d met. When he read the question of who drugged him, he froze. For a long moment, he started to type, then erased it, then started again. Each time little dots appeared indicating he was typing and second-guessing himself.  
  


_‘tell me who drugged you’_

  
‘What, so you can kill them too?’ Caleb replied, frowning.  
  
The man who had drugged him had intended on raping him, he understood that much, but then the question of had he done it before came to the forefront. That place had numerous accusations about sexual misconduct from patrons against other patrons. To send that man to his death was like killing one cockroach out of thousands, but more importantly, it felt _just and right _to do it.  
  
‘I’m not a murderer like you,’ he said finally, electing to keep the identity of his assailant to himself. ‘It’s only a matter of time before that place gets shut down anyway,’ he rapidly added.

* * *

‘Happy to be of service, as always’  
  
Jaydin responded back to Will.  
  
‘Looking forward to it’  
  
‘😘❤️ ’  
  
-  
  
By that time, Jayden’s car pulled up to a lone restaurant several blocks away from the apartment. He briefly pocketed both phones and gave a nod and a smile to the driver before he got out and continued the rest of the way on foot.  
  
He started along the way, initially ignoring the rapid buzzing from his burner phone. After about ten minutes he decided to pick it up and read through the various messages Caleb had sent.  
  
‘yes’  
  
‘you are’  
  
A pause.  
  
‘I want to kill him for you’  
  
‘please’  
  
‘do not protect him’  
  
Another pause.  
  
‘the police will not take care of this’  
  
‘you only have me’

* * *

During the ten minutes of waiting, Caleb was tempted to run downstairs and spill everything to Will. A small, reasonable part of him wanted Will, Jayden or _anyone _to walk him out of continuing talking to the Midnight Killer. Instead, he laid on his bed, eyeing his phone as if it might bite him and wondering just what he should do. Suddenly, hearing his phone buzz, his attention fell onto the screen as he unlocked it.  
  


_'yes' ... ‘you are’_

  
'I'm not,' he replied on autopilot.  
  


_‘I want to kill him for you’ ... ‘please’ ... ‘do not protect him’_

  
'We all want what we can't have,' Caleb texted back, hesitating, almost caving even as he refused.  
  


_‘the police will not take care of this’ ... ‘you only have me’_

  
'Killing for the sake of killing isn't art,' pausing, Caleb wondered if he could appeal to that side of the killer. 'Are you planning on killing Will and me?' He asked after a moment, unsure if he'd get an answer.

* * *

‘...’  
  
‘not art’  
  
‘This is correcting a problem’  
  
The last question, however, gave him a bit of pause. Jayden stopped shot in the middle of his walk and pondered over things. Was he planning on killing them as well? He could turn them both into artwork and it’d likely be the most glorious thing he created. A real magnun opus. But then they wouldn’t be around anymore. They always said that art was sacrifice, but he wondered if that was a sacrifice he wanted to make.  
  
That said. If he wasn’t planning on killing them, that just begged the question of what exactly he sought to accomplish by forcing himself into their lives.  
  
‘No’  
  
He eventually texted back after a few minutes of pondering.  
  
‘Maybe’  
  
Another pause.  
  
'...'  
  
‘’Depends’  
  
‘You indulge me and I won’t have reason to’

* * *

_‘This is correcting a problem’_

  
'Killing one almost rapist isn't correcting a problem,' Caleb insisted, though he was somewhat glad the Midnight Killer didn't consider random homicide art. 'If I give you a name, I'm not going to see it in the news, am I?'  
  
One concern Caleb had, in a growing list of concerns, was that if the man who had drugged him appeared as the latest victim, then it'd be easy for Jayden and Will to connect the dots. Jayden and Caleb had looked at the ID, both knew the name, so from there, it'd be easy to assume Caleb had given the name out. The thought of how Will might look at him after was more than Caleb could handle.  
  


_‘No’ ... ‘Maybe’ ... “...”_

  
Caleb frowned at how easily he got a 'no,' then felt his brows furrow at the 'maybe,' and after a long pause, he wondered if the Midnight Killer himself knew if he was going to murder them or not.  
  


_‘Depends’ ... ‘You indulge me and I won’t have reason to’_

  
'That's so reassuring 🙄,' Caleb texted back after a few minutes of consideration. 'Indulge you how? By giving you a hitlist?'

* * *

‘not here to reassure’  
  
‘but it won’t be in the news’  
  
‘though I can send a picture if you’d like. give the location if you’d want’  
  
At that point, Jayden had made it back to the apartment building again. However, rather than go through the main lobby he opted to go in through a side entrance reserved as a fire escape and started to head upward. He was pretty familiar with the layout of the building after having returned repeated and didn’t have much trouble reaching Abigail’s floor again.  
  
After double-checking in the halls he invited himself inside and then made his way toward the kitchen.  
  
‘Hitlist? I asked for one name. However if there’s more….’

* * *

_‘though I can send a picture if you’d like. give the location if you’d want’_

  
‘Not here to issue death warrants,’ Caleb replied. ‘I don’t want the location, or a picture, just keep it out of the news.’  
  
After a moment more of hesitance, Caleb finally sent the Midnight Killer the name. Almost immediately after he was struck by a feeling of shame after caving in so easily. What would Will think? He had to ask himself.  
  


_‘However if there’s more….’_

  
‘That’s a slippery slope,’ Caleb texted back immediately. ‘If you’re looking for people who’ve hurt Will and me, you’re out of luck, one’s in prison already and the other’s up for re-election.’  
  
‘I’m not going to elaborate on that last one,’ Caleb clarified. ‘That’s Will’s choice if he wants to share that with anyone.’

* * *

‘: )’  
  
‘ty’  
  
‘I’ll enjoy this’  
  
Jayden waited patiently, leaning against the kitchen counter as he read the rest of Caleb’s texts. The prison one must have been the stalker they had spoken of before, with the upcoming parole hearing. The second one, however, caused him to raise a brow, he wasn’t sure if he heard of any references to any elected officials since speaking with the two of them.  
  
‘well’  
  
‘if that changes’  
  
‘you know how to reach me’  
  
Another pause.  
  
‘send me a picture of you’  
  
After hitting send he pocketed the phone and glanced around the now-dismal looking condo. He wondered if he should burn the place down, that would be the easiest way to ensure that nothing would be discovered. Then again, he wasn’t that familiar with arson. He could easily light a match and tossed it out into the middle of the floor but there was no way for him to tell if things would burn properly and completely.  
  
Instead he just decided to casually walk around and inspect things manually then do another general cleaning of the apartment. Time-consuming, but safer and more reliable than taking short cuts.

* * *

_‘I’ll enjoy this’_

Caleb breathed in, then out, reminding himself that this wouldn’t bite him in the ass. Well, as far as he knew, though he couldn’t be sure that the Midnight Killer would keep his word about dragging this into the news. After a moment of calming down, he also reminded himself that if nothing else there was one less potential rapist prowling around for other victims.  
  


_‘you know how to reach me’_

  
‘Don’t tell Will,’ texting back quickly, Caleb felt some degree of guilt over keeping this from Will in the first place.  
  


_‘send me a picture of you’_

  
Staring at the last text the Midnight Killer had sent, Caleb contemplated the request that read more like a demand. Biting his lip, he had to wonder if this is what he’d meant by indulging him and if it’d factor into keeping both himself and Will alive. Unsure as ever about this whole thing, Caleb sighed, then sat up and snapped a picture of himself. A simple selfie couldn’t hurt.  
  
‘I’m not that kind of streamer,’ he texted with the attached image.  
  
In the photo, Caleb was sitting cross-legged in his bed wearing a threadbare t-shirt and a pair of shorts. He was illuminated by moonlight filtering in through the window between his and Will’s beds and a nearby lamp on his bedside table. There was also a string of blue lights lining Caleb’s bed frame, but that was more ambiance than anything.

* * *

It wouldn’t be but another hour and a half before Jayden picked up his phone again. He made his rounds across the various rooms, wiping off the tables, counters, doorknobs and light switches once more. That was followed by a brief pass with a mop and a watery mix of soap and vinegar to clear away any residue on the tiled floors. After putting everything away, he made his way back toward the living room and double-checked on Abigail, he offered a gentle smile at her paler state then wordlessly reached over and shut off her television.

He did one final patrol of the apartment to double-check things and sate his paranoia, then made his way out and double-checked that the door was locked behind him.

When everything was finally settled he let out a low huff then quickly made his way back toward the fire escape and made his way back downstairs. Along the way, he took out his burner phone again and glanced at the picture Caleb had sent over.

‘Nice’

‘However’

‘You’ll be whatever I want you to be’

* * *

By the time the Midnight Killer responded to his messages Caleb had since turned off the lights in the bedroom before settling in under the covers. While trying to fall asleep, Caleb had taken to checking his social media, responding to DMs, liking things, and even posting a few photos on Instagram that he’d taken over the last day or so before retweeting a few things on twitter. Distantly, he could hear Will downstairs in the living room. He suspected Will’s infamous insomnia was striking again and it’d be a while before he came upstairs to sleep.  
  


_‘Nice’ ... ‘However’ ... ‘You’ll be whatever I want you to be’_

Caleb clicked over to his messages when the first one came through and as the rest followed, he shivered. He wasn’t sure what to make of the message, if it was a threat, a promise, or something else. Reading it, then rereading, Caleb tried to formulate a response. Dots appeared as he struggled to find some rebuttal, only to come up short. In the end, Caleb sighed, realizing the Midnight Killer wasn’t wrong. No matter how much he disagreed.  
  
‘Right now what I’m going to be is asleep, I have class in the morning,’ he texted, then plugged his phone in on his bedside table.

* * *

‘: )’  
  
After exiting the building, Jayden stood off to one side and let out a deep sigh of relief as he enjoyed the cool air for a moment. He essentially had wasted a day but at least he didn’t feel the desire to worry or stress out over the apartment anymore. Unfortunately, however, he could only imagine how busy the up and coming week was going to end up being.  
  
Apart from his social obligations, something he’d been slacking on responding to, he needed to see if he could find another member of the theming committee. Then he needed to file a police report again the club and do research on as well, if he decided to bother with such a thing. He still wavered back and forth on his desire to get involved with that. Then he needed to kill off the guy, which actually was something he was looking forward to compared to everything else. And he still needed to have the conversation regarding security systems, though luckily that wouldn’t require any extra work as he’d already known a couple from memory.  
  
A lot to do and he figured it better to start with what was easiest.  
  
Taking back to the streets, Jayden pocked one phone and pulled out the other and quickly put in a call to Will.

* * *

Caleb heard the sound of his phone giving one final buzz, but shifted around until his back was to the room. He'd check it in the morning, though he wondered if the Midnight Killer intended on keeping up regular correspondence or if he'd only texted to get a name for another victim. Caleb wasn't sure if him _casually _talking to a murderous psychopath was a good idea or not, but given the situation he supposed _indulging _said murderous psychopath was their best bet at not turning up as a macabre piece of 'art.'  
  
Talking to the Midnight Killer wasn't what made him uneasy if anything he almost _liked _it for all the thrills it gave him. In an odd way, aside from the overall creepiness, he almost _enjoyed _the attention he was getting. Attention he'd never gotten from his own father and attention he sure as hell wasn't getting from Jayden. It left him wondering if this was why Will liked the artist so much because it made him feel safe and wanted.

  
  
~~~

  
  
Downstairs, Will had turned on Netflix and picked a random show as background noise as he struggled to get into the right mindset to fall asleep. He wasn't even a little drowsy, though his body felt fatigued after the long day and prior evening. While he knew Caleb was upstairs, he'd found it strange that the blond had been so quiet and almost _reserved _all day. It had made him uneasy, especially since they'd agreed to block the Midnight Killer earlier that day.  
  
Checking his own social media, Will essentially did much of the same things as Caleb. After liking and commenting on a few things, his attention was caught by the incoming call from Jayden. Without a moment of hesitation, he answered the call and brought the phone up to his ear.  
  
"Hey, I was worried you might have forgotten about me," he started, a note of humor in his tone. "Busy day I take it?"

* * *

“Not a chance,” Jayden responded back, easily switching back to his warmer, more energetic self. “Guess I’m lucky you’re still up, day’s been hell,” he said, sounding a bit exhausted. He had far better days he had to admit, ones where he didn’t spend half the day asleep and the other half meticulously cleaning. It was a relief at least to hear Will’s familiar voice. That alongside his earlier little back and forth with Caleb made the irritation he felt at the moment feel absolutely minor.  
  
“Well. Business first before I forget. What you’re looking for for your place is a brand called Frontpoint. Comes with a full package. Keypad, motion sensors for the windows and doors, outdoors as well I think, cameras, etcetera. All of it can be controlled from your phone by the way, or one of those home assistants that are so popular nowadays. Oh. Also comes with some extra features that lets you manipulate lighting, temperature, and sound systems if you care about that. Costs a pretty penny, unfortunately,” he said. “Thinking that might not be a problem though, correct? However, if it is I don’t have a problem assisting with financing.”  
  
He briefly put down his phone and glanced around the darkened streets to make sure he was actually heading back to the restaurant he was dropped off earlier. The last thing he wanted was to not pay attention and end up drifting off into some side street again.  
  
“Should keep you good and secure for when I’m not around,” he said with a chuckle. “Studying hard by the way?”

* * *

_“Guess I’m lucky you’re still up, day’s been hell” _

  
Will nodded, then realized Jayden couldn't see him nodding. Over the phone, Jayden did sound tired, though from Will's point of view that didn't seem to put a damper on the older man's demeanor. Still, Will didn't want to be the reason Jayden was losing any more sleep.  
  
"Insomnia reared its head," Will said, responding to the observation that he was still up. "And I'm sure it's all because you're not here to scare it off."  
  


_"However if it is I don’t have a problem assisting with financing”_

  
"Uh..." Will thought over their finances, knowing they had a good few tens of thousands from the Midnight Killer even after spending the first donation on his birthday shortly after the Greene's case. "Depends on just how much it all costs, we've still got a lot from the Midnight Killer, as well as views, other donations, the merch store..." Trailing off, Will seemed to be considering their other sources of income. "I do have occasional contractual work and Caleb is still getting money from subleasing his apartment."  
  


_“Studying hard by the way?”_

  
"Honestly, a security system is long overdue and not just because of the Midnight Killer," pausing, Will thought for a moment. "All I've been doing today is going to class and studying and I'm worried because our previous stalker has a parole hearing during our finals, so that's a whole extra level of stress."

* * *

“I remember that,” Jayden said when Will brought up his previous stalker, feeling equal parts worried and giddy. Another problem he could ‘correct’ for them, but until that problem was corrected he had no way of knowing who or what that stalker was up to. That thought in mind made his recommendation for home security a genuinely good idea.  
  
“So that’s coming up, huh…” he said, his voice lower, sounding more worried. “Anything I can do to help? I could stay over a couple of nights during that week if it made you feel better,” Jayden offered. He thought about bringing up that maybe the police would do their part and keep him behind bars but he knew that his words would ring hollow.  
  
“There are other benefits to that as well,” he next said, voice warming back up again. “Evidently I’m a decent cure for insomnia. And I’ve gotten rave reviews for how warm and comfortable I can be. Worth consideration,” he finished with a light chuckle.  
  
“And speaking of staying over…” Jayden paused a bit. A bit of shuffling could be heard as he moved his phone in front of him and started checking through his calendar. After glancing through the dates and times he nodded to himself and brought the device back to his ear.  
  
“How’s this coming Wednesday or Thursday look for you?” He asked. “We can have our little date night,” he said which was quickly followed by yet another chuckle. “Oh, my mistake. I meant _coffee_ night.”

* * *

_“Anything I can do to help? I could stay over a couple of nights during that week if it made you feel better” _

  
"I think once we have a security system in place I'd feel better about everything," Will replied, thinking over the offer. "But I wouldn't be opposed to you staying over again."  
  


_"And I’ve gotten rave reviews for how warm and comfortable I can be. Worth consideration” _

  
Pausing, Will considered the offer and the limited sleeping arrangements. He wasn't sure how comfortable the couch or armchair might be for a full night of sleep. He supposed they'd fit easily enough in his bed, which was substantially more comfortable than the couch. That just left the question of Caleb sleeping a few feet away and whether Jayden or Caleb himself would  
  


_“And speaking of staying over…”_

  
Will listened, hearing some shuffling and guessed that Jayden might be checking his schedule. He blinked blearily at the TV screen in front of him, not processing what was going on, though he was momentarily distracted.  
  


_“Oh, my mistake. I meant_ coffee_ night”_

  
The sound of Jayden's voice startled Will out of his brief reverie and he wondered whether he should head to bed soon and hope for the best. That being said, he quickly thought over his school schedule and after a moment decided he could make either of those days work, but Thursday might be better.  
  
"Thursday night would be great," Will answered after a moment, "sorry, I kind of zoned out for a moment there. I might actually be more tired than I realized."

* * *

“Thursday it is,” Jayden said as he slipped inside a small, mostly-empty restaurant. There was a brief pause as he paid his way over to the bar and ordered himself a small rum and coke then scheduled himself another Uber to take him home.

“Why the insomnia though, still stressed over everything?” He next asked as he eyed the bartender as he made his drink. He briefly had to stop the man and pointed out the specific brand of rum that he wanted rather than the bottle that he had originally intended to use.

* * *

_“Thursday it is”_

  
On his end, Will nodded, once again seeming to forget that Jayden couldn't see him. Putting the call on speaker, he took the phone away from his face and opened google calendar to create a reminder for Thursday. He wasn't sure what time exactly, but given that all he had to do that day after class was study, it didn't matter the venue.  
  


_“Why the insomnia though, still stressed over everything?” _

  
"Well," Will started, thinking over a decent answer. "I've always had a sleep problem," he admitted, "well before all of this, I don't know if it's more of an unfortunate chemical imbalance or a learned behavior with me." Pausing, Will sounded as if he wanted to say more, but didn't know how to phrase it. "There was...a time in my life when falling asleep wasn't always safe," he said after a moment.  
  
Thinking a moment longer, and giving Jayden a chance to digest that bit of information or respond, Will considered the present circumstances.  
  
"I'm not too worried about finals, I'm always on top of things..." Trailing off, there was an unspoken 'but.' "It's kind of funny in a humorless kind of way, Caleb and I are doing a joint project for our senior thesis on the Midnight Killer." Once again, he let that sink in, "so...I guess that's part of the reason we're so eager to find anything the police might overlook... Originally it was going to be a simple research project, but then he contacted us and...well..." Going quiet, Will sighed. "Sorry, I hate how every word out of my mouth to you is about him."

* * *

Jayden just listened in silence. The phone was kept in one hand pressed to his ear, while his other continued to wordless point and give the increasingly irritated bartender instructions on how he wanted his drink. Under normal circumstances, he wasn’t too picky about what he drunk, however after hours’ worth of cleaning he felt he deserved to be at least somewhat particular with what he chose to drink that night.  
  
“I see...” He said at first when Will suggested that he had a rougher life before things. He pondered whether or not to ask for further elaboration but decided against it, figuring something like that would be better for a face-to-face conversation rather than over the phone. “Well, if there’s something you need to get off your chest or let me know of, I’m all ears,” he said, figuring that was a solid, neutral answer to give.  
  
As Will continued, Jayden watched as the bartender nearly slammed his drink down in front of him. Paying the other man no mind, he casually took his other glass into his hand and brought it to his lips. “That’s a tall order for a research project,” he said, not sounding too thrilled but kept his opinion to himself  
  
“About who? Caleb or the psycho?” He said after sipping on his drink. “No need to apologize though, think that what I like most about you actually. Believe or not I’ve been single for some time now. It’s difficult to date in my social circles. Everyone knows me, so everyone automatically thinks that the only thing I want to talk about is art or my work… it’s actually a bit refreshing to be able to not talk about that for once.”

* * *

_“Well, if there’s something you need to get off your chest or let me know of, I’m all ears” _

“I think some things are best left for an in person conversation,” Will replied after a moment. “Maybe on Thursday,” he offered, knowing they probably did have things to talk about before things got too serious.

_“That’s a tall order for a research project” _

“It’s supposed to be the culmination of everything we’ve learned over the last almost four years,” Will answered, shrugging. “My half was meant to be the documentary bits for film studies, while Caleb wrote the reports for the journalism end of things. ...It’s a little disturbing, but at times it feels like the killer himself is another collaborator on all of this.”

_“Everyone knows me, so everyone automatically thinks that the only thing I want to talk about is art or my work… it’s actually a bit refreshing to be able to not talk about that for once”_

“Do...you not want me to talk about Caleb?” Will frowned a little once Jayden was done talking. He knew Jayden and Caleb went together like gasoline on a fire, but he’d been hoping to not have to choose between the two. “I did mean the psycho though, I can’t imagine what it must be like constantly hearing about someone who has killed several people you know.”

“So...you like me because I treat you like a regular person?” The tone in Will’s voice heavily implied he was smiling now, finding the idea somewhat comical. “I do like seeing you dressed down and...it’s silly, but I want to get to know you and not just the artist everyone’s always fawning over.”

* * *

“Oh no, I just misunderstood. It’d be pretty awkward if you didn’t talk about Caleb considering the two of you are pretty much together at the hip,” he stated. “And I fully expect the three of us to be hanging out together in the future. I just wish that he weren’t so reckless. I’ve nothing against him, I just worry.”  
  
The man then chuckled when he heard slight amusement from Will’s voice. “Is that really such a surprise? I think most famous people who aren’t utter narcissists feel this way. You never really know what you end up getting when you make yourself available. People after money, people after fame, people after the idea of the guy that they see in the media...” His voice trailed off, not wanting to give further examples. “It’s been easier for me to just stick with casual hookups and leave it at that. No need to be anxious about what the other person is after if we leave the relationship at just sex,” he admitted. “Both of you have been way different from the people I’ve met in this city. Remember that dinner we had? I was so ready to do my usual spiel about art and the creative process, and the two of you just weren’t interested at all,” he said, grinning as he took another sip.  
  
“Really caught me off-guard there. I mean, in the end, you two were still using me. Just for something entirely different,” he paused, then quickly added. “Not… not that I’m bitter about that. I’m not. As you said, we wouldn’t have met had you two not done what you did. So in a way, I’m actually rather glad that night ended as it did. Really I am,” he said, pausing a moment to down the rest of his drink.  
  
“But anyway, that was then and this is now. And I’m sure you’ll have plenty of opportunities to see me dressed down,” he cackled as he raised his glance again to crunch on a bit of ice. “Dressed _way_ down and r_eally_ getting to know me if you catch my drift."

* * *

_“I’ve nothing against him, I just worry”_

  
“Caleb is…” Will started, then paused, deciding that certain things were Caleb’s alone to share. “I think what happened last night might have knocked some sense into him,” Will said instead, reaching for the remote to turn the TV off, leaving the living room dark save for what little light filtered through the blinds. “He didn’t even put up much of a fight over blocking the Midnight Killer.”

_“I was so ready to do my usual spiel about art and the creative process, and the two of you just weren’t interested at all” _

  
“I was nervous through that whole dinner,” sighing, Will shook his head. “The food was good, but that’s not really my kind of scene,” he concluded, knowing it had gone a little off the rails. “What’s-his-face looked ready to pop when he saw Caleb and I dressed like we just walked out of a lecture hall...which is exactly where we were prior to dinner.”

_“So in a way, I’m actually rather glad that night ended as it did. Really I am” _

  
“I would think us using you is mutually beneficial,” getting up from the couch, Will started double-checking the locks, more out of habit than anything else. “We get some insider information for our research and...well, I guess you have an idea of what you’ve gained from all of this, headaches aside.”

_“Dressed way down and really getting to know me if you catch my drift"_

  
“Jesus H. Christ,” Will groaned once he was sure downstairs was all secure. “I’m sure we’ll have time to get _intimately_ acquainted...actually, come to think of it, Caleb never did get an interview with you, did he?” Heading upstairs, Will paused. “Anyway, I really should make an effort to get some sleep.”

* * *

Jayden cackled once more at Will’s retort. He didn’t say anything else on that note, quite fine with having thrown the flirt out there solely for the response he got out of the younger man.  
  
“Interview?” He asked instead, trying to think back to when this was brought up. “I’m fine with having a chat with him, I guess. Can’t say that I’m interested in being in one of your videos, however. Not after what happened to Abigail,” he said, raising his glass once more to capture the rest of his ice. Once he did, he got a ping that his Uber had finally arrived and moved to get up. He slipped a fifty underneath his glass for the bartender for the trouble he had caused then slowly made his way out to wait along the sidewalk.  
  
“Guess that’ll be something that I hash out with him though,” he then said. “Who knows, maybe it’ll help us get along better. But yes, don’t let me keep you up any further,” he said as he got into his ride and gave a gesture to go. “I’ll send a text in the morning. Get some sleep for me, alright?”

* * *

_“Interview?” … “Not after what happened to Abigail” _

  
“That’s great,” Will replied, as he made it to the top of the stairs and started down the hall to the bedroom. “And I wasn’t thinking an interview for our videos, or even necessarily about the Midnight Killer,” he continued, standing just outside the bedroom door. “Rumor has it there’s a bunch of journalism students who want an interview with you, but after that fiasco the first day no one’s been bold enough to approach you about it.”  
  


_“Who knows, maybe it’ll help us get along better.”_

  
“It might endear him to you,” giving a shrug, Will considered how Caleb might feel about it. “And I say that knowing him and I couldn’t stand each other when we first met in freshman year.”  
  


_“Get some sleep for me, alright?”_

  
“I’ll be sure to, goodnight,” with those parting words, Will ended the call and opened the bedroom door.  
  
The room was how Will expected. There was faint illumination from the window, but it was otherwise dark. Approaching Caleb’s bed, Will paused as he watched the outline of Caleb’s chest rise and fall with soft breaths. With his anxiety alleviated, knowing Caleb was safe and not putting himself in peril presently, Will went to change into a pair of nightclothes before slipping into his own bed.

* * *

Jayden got back to his suite late, but certainly not as exhausted as he had been that morning.  
  
After arriving he made his way into the kitchen and popped in some leftovers into his oven to warm up, then made his way back over to the living room with a broom and cloth to clean away the shards of glass from his coffee mug and the large, noticeable stain that was now plastered across part of the wall. That finished, he enjoyed his meal quietly and in silence as he went through his phone, finally returning the remaining text that he’d been putting on hold since yesterday.  
  
Everything said and done, he headed off into the shower to quickly washed up and then promptly made his way into the comfort of his own bed.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caleb has a semi-informative conversation with the Midnight Killer and another interview is scheduled.
> 
> Also, Jayden types like that on purpose while hiding behind the Midnight Killer persona, as a side note.

The following morning, Caleb woke up first, though it was still rather early. Sitting up, he reached for his phone automatically. There were various social media notifications and texts, but he zeroed in on a very specific conversation with a private number. Eyeing the smiley that had been left, Caleb wondered if he’d done something stupid by interacting with the killer behind Will’s back.  
  
‘There’s something I’ve been curious about,’ he texted before getting up to head to the shower.  
  
While Caleb was showering, Will began to stir and after a good fifteen minutes he dragged himself out of bed. On autopilot, he wandered downstairs to work on breakfast, not terribly worried about his phone just yet. After how late it had been, he wasn’t sure if Jayden was asleep himself at the moment.

* * *

The following morning, Jayden was up pretty early. He had a usual routine of coffee, meditation, and then a brief workout to get his joints and muscles loosened up and energized after hours of just laying around. He’d have some free time which he planned to use to start on his next piece, then an afternoon with his personal trainer and a dinner with friends. After the past two days, with its odds and ends, it was nice to have a slight return to normalcy for once.  
  
He was awoken to a couple of morning texts - a businessman attempting to haggle on a piece that was already situated inside of a museum and a group chat where his friends were confirming time and venue for the dinner later. To his surprise however, as he was settled inside of his bed and casually sipping away at his coffee, he heard the subtle vibration of a response from his throwaway phone.  
  
Reaching off to the side and picking that up as well he raised a brow at the response Caleb had sent over.  
  
‘?’

* * *

Eventually, Caleb came out of the shower and went about drying off and getting dressed. After pulling on a pair of boxers, jeans and a t-shirt, he glanced over at his phone and unlocked it after seeing a new message from his allegedly favorite deranged psychopath.  
  


_‘?’_

  
Having read the question mark, he pulled on a pair of socks while thinking of how to best ask the question he had. Caleb had many questions about a number of different things, it was just a question of how to ask them.  
  
‘The Greenes,’ he texted, ‘you made a mistake, didn’t you? With Alison Greene, she wasn’t supposed to be there.’  
  
Running a hand through his still-damp hair, Caleb was still unsure of what he was doing. Was it right to ask a known serial killer about past crime scenes?  
  
‘But you’ve seen our video about them, haven’t you?’ He asked rhetorically.

* * *

‘no mistakes’  
  
‘if I made mistakes’  
  
‘i’d be caught by now’  
  
‘: )’  
  
Jayden responded as he thought back on the situation. That plan did go awry, he had to admit, the wife had been too nosy. He wasn’t quite satisfied with the bit of improv he had to do with that scene but it was something he figured that he’d just have to learn to live with.  
  
‘she was nosy’  
  
‘always was’  
  
‘paranoid and nosy’  
  
‘i do miss Roberto though’  
  
‘funny man. we had a good time’  
  
‘always like him more than the others’  
  
After finishing up his coffee, Jayden got up and threw on a pair of sweatpants and made his way back over to the living room. He set both phones off to one side, then casually went over to his closet and pulled out an empty canvas and carried it over to his easel and started getting things set up.  
  
‘her blood was like liquid ruby’  
  
‘so nice…’  
  
‘i don’t think she truly appreciated the contrast it had against her skin…’

* * *

_‘no mistakes’ ... ‘if I made mistakes’ ... ‘i’d be caught by now’ ... ‘: )’_

  
Caleb read the first four texts and paused, staring and thinking back to every case he knew about. Like so many previous statements from the Midnight Killer, there was more truth to this one than Caleb liked to admit. If the Midnight Killer made mistakes he wouldn’t have racked up a body count of forty-six confirmed victims. Frowning, Caleb had to wonder _when _the Midnight Killer would make a mistake.  
  


_‘she was nosey’ ... ‘always like him more than the others’_

  
Still getting ready for school, Caleb went back into the bathroom to work on getting a comb through his hair. He didn’t take much time preening and then focused on brushing his teeth, distantly aware of the incoming texts. Once he came back out of the bathroom, he flopped onto his still unmade bed and scanned over them. Raising an eyebrow, he concluded the Midnight Killer hadn’t necessarily made a mistake, but aspects of the Greene’s case hadn’t been planned. That and he guessed that he had to have been right in his theory that the Midnight Killer knew or befriended victims first.  
  


_‘her blood was like liquid ruby’ ... ‘i don’t think she truly appreciated the contrast it had against her skin…’_

  
Caleb watched as the last three texts came in, his brow furrowed and once again he had to wonder if this was a mistake. Biting at his lip, Caleb started to formulate a response, then switched gears and went for another question.  
  
‘Why?’ He asked, then shook his own head before adding another line. ‘What made you decide to start killing?’ A pause, then another line. ‘Everyone has their reasons why they started.’

* * *

Jayden glanced at Caleb’s message and thought back to when he was little. He didn’t remember much, blood and lots of it. Red everywhere. Then there was the period where he was forced on medication. The world became black and white. By the time he had grown and was off medication all he recalled was the craving for that same vibrant color of red everywhere.  
  
He wasn’t sure if he could even answer that question though. Killing was something he felt he had always done. It was as casual of an activity to him as the brunches and dinners he constantly went to within his social circles.  
  
‘what made you decide to start breathing?’  
  
He texted back, figuring that would probably get his point across.  
  
‘people say its bad’  
  
‘its not bad to me though’  
  
‘there is no voice that tells me this is wrong’  
  
‘there is nothing’

* * *

_‘what made you decide to start breathing?’_

  
Eyebrows furrowed as Caleb read that line and he was tempted to get his notebook. The only thing that stopped him was the fact that he’d already had the text logs and because he didn’t want to waste a moment since the Midnight Killer was in a talkative mood.  
  


‘_people say its bad’ ... ‘there is nothing’_

  
Caleb started typing, the erased what he’d written, then started again and repeated the process. He has so many questions and he couldn’t pick just one. He figured asking about the cases was all he could really do. He didn’t want to ruin it by asking personal questions that he doubted he’d get an answer to simply because it might reveal the killer’s identity.  
  
‘So no traumatic experience that triggered it all?’ Caleb typed, mind racing. ‘What was your childhood like? Parents still around?’

* * *

‘nosy’  
  
‘nosy’  
  
‘nosy’  
  
Jayden paused as he looked back at his phone, brows raised. He wondered if he should just cut off Caleb then and there, derail the conversation by adding in something creepy like he usually did. Well, creepy to others at least. Such things never really phased him.  
  
‘trying to investigate me?’  
  
‘nosy little boys get kidnapped’  
  
‘nosy little boys get their mouths put to better use’

* * *

_‘nosy’ ... ‘nosy’ ... ‘nosy’_

Caleb froze, worried briefly that the Midnight Killer would stop responding altogether. Biting his lip a little harder, Caleb stopped typing for a long moment, wondering where to go from here. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the killer kept typing.

_‘trying to investigate me?’_

Nodding to himself, Caleb wanted to make some quip about that was sort of what he did. It was in his nature to be curious to a fault.

_‘nosy little boys get kidnapped’_

Inhaling sharply, Caleb felt something like a rush of fear, though he couldn’t be sure it wasn’t something else.

_‘nosy little boys get their mouths put to better use’_

‘Can’t I be curious?’ He texted, heart racing. ‘😜💙’

* * *

‘curiosity will turn you into a liability’

Jayden looked down at the phone, his head tilted sideways just slightly as a thought crossed his mind.

‘i like liabilities’

‘fun’

‘...for me…’

‘: )’

  
There was a brief pause as he moved over by his window and leaned against it to think how best to answer his previous questions. What answer could he give without absolutely making a mess of things.

‘a mother’

‘drugged many, many years’

‘how scared she was the world would find out about me…’

‘she told me it would help bring back the little voice in my head’

‘it never brought back the little voice in my head’

* * *

_‘i like liabilities’ ... ‘fun’ ... ‘...for me…’ ... ‘: )’_

  
Reading over the texts, Caleb couldn't help but be relieved that they were getting a security system installed eventually. As interested in (or obsessed with) the Midnight Killer as he was he wasn't ready to put himself in direct danger. Thinking for a moment, trying to be sensible, it occurred to him that just because the killer hadn't decided on killing him didn't mean he was safe.  
  


_‘a mother’ ... ‘it never brought back the little voice in my head’_

  
Caleb read over the texts again, this time getting up and grabbing his notebook off of the dresser nearby. With a pen in hand, he fell back onto his bed and jotted down a few notes. It sounded as if the father was out of the picture, dead or just gone was unclear. The mention of drugged had him alarmed until he got to the bit about the mother being scared and a voice. After a moment, he concluded there was an implied mental health diagnosis. Desperately, Caleb wanted to ask what the diagnosis had been but suspected that was _too _curious this soon.  
  
'I take it you weren't abused or anything,' Caleb texted after setting his pen aside. 'Are you from around here?' He ventured, wondering if that would help the investigation at all. 'Lol, you know a lot more about me than I know about you,' he added.

* * *

‘because you’re mine’

‘i know everything i need’

‘i can make you vanish whenever i want’

‘just like the others’

‘maybe tonight… maybe tomorrow… maybe next week… maybe next semester...’

‘looking forward to it’

‘Liability : )’

-

  
At that point Jayden took his other phone and figured it might’ve been a decent time to finally text and act as if he had actually been awake. He first pulled up his texts to Will and quickly started typing.

‘Morning ❤️ Able to sleep well?’

He then switched over to Caleb’s number and started to text as well.

‘Hey. Uh. Look, sorry about how I acted before. Was just worried. All the stress and anxiety of that night really took a toll. Spoke with Will about things. He said you wanted to talk about stuff? Something about an interview?”

He then returned back to his burner phone.

‘until then’

‘you can send me another picture’

‘maybe i will be patient’

‘and answer questions instead’

* * *

_‘because you’re mine’ ... ‘Liability : )’_

Watching the stream of texts come in, Caleb once again asked himself if this was a good idea. He could easily tell Will and Jayden, could even go to the police and maybe hope they’d hear him out. Then again, he supposed he could just as easily book a ticket out of town and forget all of this. Unfortunately, Caleb wasn’t one to run and he felt like he was so close to getting somewhere with all of this.

Besides, he reasoned as he got up and put his school bag together, he only had finals and one semester left before he graduated. At that point, depending on what Will decided to do for himself and the house, he’d figure things out then. Getting up and heading downstairs, Caleb decided that if things got too out of hand they could just skip town after graduation.

_‘Morning ❤️ Able to sleep well?’_

‘Morning 💜,’ Will texted back automatically after putting breakfast onto two plates. ‘Slept alright I guess, have class in like an hour or so, but I made breakfast.’

_‘Hey. Uh. Look, sorry about how I acted before.’ ... ‘Something about an interview?”_

Arriving in the kitchen, Caleb looked down, expecting another text from the Midnight Killer. When he saw Jayden’s name instead, he scrunched his nose up, but clicked on it to give it a read anyway. He might not be thrilled with the guy, but they were all involved in this shitstorm together whether he liked it or not.

Before he could read beyond the ‘hey uh’ portion, he found himself distracted by another series of texts from the Midnight Killer. Switching over, and briefly leaving Jayden on read, he scanned over those texts.

_‘until then’ ... ‘and answer questions instead’_

‘‘Maybe’ isn’t a very strong word,’ Caleb texted, ‘and I’m having fun playing this game. 😜’

With that, Caleb pulled up the camera app and took a second to decide what he was going to do before snapping a picture to send. Around this time Will turned and watched as Caleb stuck his tongue out and made a somewhat silly face with a peace sign while snapping the aforementioned picture.

“What the Hell are you doing?” Will asked, laughing suddenly.

“Texting your boyfriend,” Caleb quipped, clearly intending it as a joke.

‘Ttyl, daddy,’ Caleb added under the photo, not sure if it was a bad idea or not. ‘💙’

“Oh right, I told him you want an interview,” Will said after a moment, picking his plate up.

Caleb nodded, then opened Jayden’s text up and read it over, once, then twice.

‘It’s w/e,’ he texted back, still pretty butthurt, but not wanting to shoot himself in the foot when he had a shot at the highly coveted Jayden Mattis interview. ‘An interview would be great, is there a date, time, and place that works for you?’ A pause, ‘I can compile and send the questions over so you have time to prep.’

* * *

‘cute’

‘: )’

‘daddy’s gonna enjoy making use of you’

  
After reading Will’s message Jayden realized that he hadn’t had breakfast himself. He groaned under his breath, wishing that coffee alone could have been a meal in and of itself.

  
‘Got an extra plate for me?’

He texted back jokingly to Will.

‘Also texted Caleb about the interview. So, guess that’ll be happening now.’

‘I hope he keeps his expectations in check though… Not sure what he’s expecting out of this.’

  
After hitting send he switch over to his thread with Caleb’s and briefly glanced through his response.

‘No need for prep. Lunch on Friday work? I’ll be on campus so it shouldn’t be difficult to meet up.’

‘I’m not agreeing to being recorded or featured on your channels or anything btw.’

‘No articles or anything either.’

‘You can use this for your notes and your project. That’s it.’

* * *

_‘cute’ ... ‘: )’ ... ‘daddy’s gonna enjoy making use of you’_

Caleb glanced at the messages from the Midnight Killer before locking his phone and grabbing the remaining plate from the counter. He wasn't sure how to feel about the reply. He doubted the Midnight Killer was planning on using him to make a skin suit and that was enough to be somewhat less worried.

_‘Got an extra plate for me?’_

'Lol, when you stay over again I'll be sure to make an extra plate,' Will texted back with one hand while he poked at an egg with a fork.

_‘So, guess that’ll be happening now’_

'He mentioned he was texting you,' Will replied, then frowned, wondering then why exactly Caleb had been taking a picture though.

It couldn't have been something for Jayden, that didn't make a whole lot of sense, but that left the question of who else Caleb was texting. Chewing on a bit of scrambled egg, Will looked out the window and thought for a moment. It could have been for social media, though a contextless headshot was rarely something Caleb did for that. He liked context and to an extent keeping the world updated on what was happening in any given picture. Another thought crossed his mind that perhaps Caleb was finding a distraction other than the Midnight Killer.

The temptation to ask Caleb if he was setting a tinder or grindr profile up was strong.

_‘Not sure what he’s expecting out of this’_

At Jayden's next text, Will smiled, feeling rather pleased with himself. Granted, there were so many ways shoving Jayden and Caleb into a room together could blow up in everyone's faces. Still, it was worth a try to get them to get along better... Though Will couldn't help but feel...odd about Caleb potentially seeking out some stranger to flirt with and messing things up even if Will had told him to do as much.

'Who knows what anyone's expecting,' he replied after a long moment. '😘💜'

_‘You can use this for your notes and your project. That’s it’_

While Will was grinning up a storm, Caleb felt his phone vibrate and checked his incoming messages from Jayden. With each response, he seemed to frown more and more until he was outright pouting at his phone.

'Wasn't planning on this being a thing for YouTube,' he texted back.

'This isn't even a Midnight Killer thing,' he added.

'This might surprise you,' Caleb texted, 'but people are actually curious about this sudden interest you have in academia.'

'Not sure knowing what classes you're hoping to teach and all that will help track down the Midnight Killer,' he continued.

'W/e, Friday at lunch works,' Caleb sighed, poking at his food again.

* * *

‘Well. I’ll do what I can to make this work’

‘For you❤️ ’

Jayden texted back to Will then switched back over to Caleb.

‘Oh?’

‘That actually is a surprise considering you’ve only been going on and on about this murderer business since we’ve met.’

‘But alright. I promised Will that I’d go along with what you wanted. So Friday it is.’

  
Jayden then set both phones to the table off to the side then made his way to the kitchen to fry himself a couple of eggs. Hardly the most glamorous or fanciest of meals but it didn’t need to be, he just felt like he needed to get something in his stomach before he got to work.

After he had finished up, he made his way back to the easel and then brought a pencil to the canvas and started to sketch a rough scene of a woman sitting atop a window sill. Arms wrapped around his knees, she stared out wistfully to a crowd a people looking back at her, all of them holding up cameras and phones that veiled the majority of their faces.

* * *

_‘For you ❤️'_

  
Will read over Jayden’s texts once more before locking his phone and focusing on clearing the rest of his plate now that the eggs were gone. Idly glancing at Caleb, Will watched as the blond seemed to be texting and looking not entirely happy. He suspected it would be like that until whatever tension existed between Jayden and Caleb was resolved.  
  


_‘So Friday it is’_

  
Caleb read the responses and wasn’t sure how to feel. For the time being, he didn’t respond, accepting that lunch on Friday would be when he’d have his interview. With that in mind, he set his phone aside and turned his attention solely on his plate. He’d consider how to respond to Jayden later, not entirely content with how the artist seemed convinced the Midnight Killer was _all_ he cared about.

~~~  


Breakfast done, Caleb had taken both plates and went about cleaning up the kitchen while Will headed upstairs for a shower and to get ready for class. Eventually, with plenty of time to spare, they left the house, double-checking everything was locked up, before hopping into Will’s jeep and heading to Campus.  
  



End file.
